South Korean LIG Nex1 to Develop High-tech Radar to Replace U.S.-made TPQ-36

South Korea’s LIG Nex1 will start working on a new counter-artillery radar to replace U.S.-produced ones under a $23 million deal signed with the state arms procurement agency.

On December 12, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) inked the contract to develop the radar system by 2026. This project is aimed at replacing aging radars used by the Army and the Marine Corps -- the TPQ-36 and 37.

The project seeks to develop a radar with enhanced capabilities, such as simultaneously detecting twice the number of targets as those detected by existing radars, reducing its deployment time by 66% and withdrawal time by 33%, and increase its remote operation distance by 10 times, DAPA said in a release.

DAPA said it plans to start deploying some 20 units of the envisioned radar in the late-2020s to division-level Army and Marine units.

"Through this project, our military will be able to secure an eye that will make it capable of detecting the origin of enemy artillery pieces more rapidly and locating them more accurately," Park Jeong-eun, Director of DAPA’s Firepower Business Department, said.