Representational image. AP File
New Delhi: Under pressure to shore up its air defence after failing to intercept five North Korean drones that flew for hours in Seoul’s airspace last month, South Korea’s military is now considering the purchase of an Israeli system that detects unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), according to Yonhap News, a South Korean news agency.
Citing an unidentified military official, the report said that the South Korean defence ministry may buy an “electric eye” system, also known as Sky Spotter, on an accelerated basis.
Built by Israeli defence contractor Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Sky Spotter is designed to provide early detection of drones, balloons and other flying objects.
Following an analysis of the system’s potential effectiveness in fending off North Korean drone threats, a decision regarding whether to formally request clearance for the procurement will be made in the upcoming weeks, according to the report.
South Korean defense analysts are trying to determine how best to plug any gaps in its current battery of radars and thermal observation devices.
On 26 December last year, South Korea’s military detected five drones from North Korea crossing the border, and one traveled as far as the northern part of the South Korean capital region, which is about an hour’s drive away.
The military responded by firing warning shots and launching fighter jets and attack helicopters to shoot down the North Korean drones. The attack helicopters fired a combined 100 rounds but it wasn’t immediately known if any of the North Korean drones were shot down, according to the Defense Ministry.
There were no immediate reports of civilian damage on the ground in South Korea. One of the North Korean drones returned to the North after three hours in South Korea, while the rest disappeared from South Korean military radars one after another, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.
With inputs from agencies
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