According to Michał Wąsiewicz, PR Manager at Hanwha Aerospace Europe, the South Korean defence company intends to target foreign markets with this new artillery system.
“Thanks to the system’s technical specifications, it will initially be marketed in the United States, the Middle East, and European markets,” he told Defence Industry Europe.
However, the project for the new self-propelled howitzer on a wheeled chassis is still in its early development stage.
“Work on the further development of the system is set to intensify once approvals from the South Korean government have been received. We plan to accelerate the work on the development of this project towards the end of this year,” he said.
According to Hanwha, the wheeled version of the K9 by Hanwha Aerospace is a versatile solution, with the possibility of integrating the automated K9A2 turret, allowing the system to be fully tailored to the needs of the end-user.
“The gun is essentially the same as in the tracked version of the K9A2. The same range, barrel length, and other capabilities,” Michał Wąsiewicz told Defence Industry Europe.
The wheeled version of the K9 self-propelled gun will be capable of firing at a range of 54 km, with a rate of fire of eight rounds per minute. The ammunition magazine will hold 40 shells, and the maximum speed of the vehicle will be 100 km/h.