Air defense and aviation of North Korea. A video of test launches of a new North Korean air defense system has been published. The DPRK has tested a new air defense system.

The first operation of the DPRK Air Force during the so-called. The “War for the Liberation of the Fatherland” (this is the official name of the Korean War, which took place from June 1950 to July 1953) was the attack by Yak-9 fighters on aircraft parked on the territory of Seoul International Airport on June 25, 1950. Before the start of the UN operation three months later North Korean pilots flying Yak-9 fighters had five confirmed aerial victories: one B-29, two L-5s, one F-80 and one F-51D each, without suffering any losses. The situation completely changed when the air forces of the international coalition countries settled in the South, and the DPRK Air Force was almost completely destroyed. The remaining aircraft were transferred across the Chinese border to the cities of Mukden and Anshan, where the United Air Force was created in November 1950 together with the Chinese Air Force. The PRC continued to provide shelter and assistance to its southern neighbor, and by the end of hostilities in 1953, the PRC Air Force consisted of approximately 135 MiG-15 fighters. A peace treaty between North and South Korea was never signed, and an uneasy peace has existed between the two camps ever since.

From 1969 to the present day, the DPRK Air Force has not been very active, with the exception of isolated decoy attacks by jet aircraft in the area of ​​the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) / Line of Tactical Actions, which are supposedly intended to test the reaction time of South Korean air defense. For example, since 2011, North Korean MiG-29 fighters have several times been forced to take off to intercept South Korean F-16s and F-15Ks.

Selection and training

Cadets for the Air Force are selected from other branches of the Armed Forces, conscripted or recruited on a voluntary basis. Flight crews are selected from the most successful members of the Youth Red Guard (consisting of 17-25 year olds) and usually come from politically influential families, with a higher educational level than the average North Korean.

The first step for those in the DPRK who want to become a military pilot is the Air Force Academy. Kim Cheka in Chongjin, where cadets study for four years. Their flight service begins with 70 hours of flight practice on the Nanchang CJ-6 training aircraft, which is a Chinese copy of the Soviet Yak-18. 50 of these aircraft were received in 1977-1978. They are based at two airfields on the east coast in Chongjin and Gyeongsong. Subsequently, upon attaining the rank of second lieutenant, or “Sowi,” cadets enter a 22-month advanced course at the Gyeongsong Officer Flight School. It includes 100 hours of flight time on MiG-15UTI combat trainers (50 were purchased between 1953-1957) or approximately the same outdated MiG-17 fighters, which are stationed at the nearby air base in Oran.

Having graduated from flight school with the rank of first lieutenant or “Jungwi”, the newly minted pilot is assigned to a combat unit for further two years of training, after which he is considered fully trained. Future helicopter pilots are trained on Mi-2 helicopters, and transport aviation pilots are trained on An-2. An officer can expect 30 years of service, but promotion to higher ranks, the highest of which is General of the Air Force or "Deajang", requires completion of many additional courses, and the highest positions are political appointments.

Training follows rigid Soviet-era doctrine and must fit within the Air Force's highly centralized command and control structure. Through interviews with defectors to South Korea, it becomes clear that poor aircraft maintenance, fuel shortages that limit flying hours, and a generally poor training system are preventing pilots from being trained to the same caliber as their Western opponents.

Organization

The current structure of the DPRK Air Force includes headquarters, four aviation divisions, two tactical aviation brigades and a number of sniper brigades (special forces) that are designed to drop troops behind enemy lines in order to disorganize them during combat operations.

The main headquarters is located in Pyongyang, it directly supervises the special flight detachment (VIP transportation), the Gyeongsong officer flight school, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, test units, as well as all air defense units of the DPRK Air Force.

Offensive and defensive weapons are located in three air divisions stationed in Kaesong, Deoksan and Hwangju, which are responsible for the use of numerous anti-aircraft artillery systems and air defense systems. The remaining air division in Oran is dedicated to operational training. Two tactical transport brigades have their headquarters in Tachon and Seondeok.

Aviation divisions and tactical brigades have several airfields at their disposal, almost all have fortified hangars, and some have separate elements of infrastructure hidden in the mountains. But not all of them have “their own” aircraft assigned to them. The DPRK's plan in case of war provides for the dispersal of aircraft from main bases in order to complicate their destruction by a preemptive strike.

The Air Force has not only “fixed” air bases at its disposal: the DPRK is intertwined with a network of long and straight highways, which are crossed by other highways using large concrete bridges. And although this can be observed in other countries, in the DPRK there is no private transport, moreover, women are even prohibited from driving a bicycle. Freight is transported by rail and there is very little road transport. Highways are intended for the rapid movement of military units across the country, as well as reserve airfields in case of war.

The main task of the DPRK Air Force is air defense, which is carried out by an automated airspace control system, which includes a network of radars located throughout the country, and covering the air situation over the Korean Peninsula and southern China. The entire system consists of a single air defense district, in which all operations are coordinated from a combat command post at the headquarters of the DPRK Air Force. The district is divided into four sector commands: northwestern, northeastern, southern and Pyongyang air defense subsector. Each sector consists of a headquarters, an airspace control center, early warning radar regiment(s), air defense regiment(s), an air defense artillery division and other independent air defense units. If an intruder is detected, the alarm is raised in the fighter units, the planes themselves take off, and the air defense systems and anti-aircraft artillery take over the target for escort. Further actions of the air defense system and artillery should be coordinated with fighter aviation headquarters and the combat command post.

The main components of the system are based around semi-mobile early warning radars, including Russian early warning radars and 5N69 guidance systems, two of which were delivered in 1984. These systems, whose stated detection range is 600 km, are supported by three ST-68U missile detection and control radars , received in 1987-1988. They can simultaneously detect up to 100 air targets at a maximum range of 175 km and are optimized for detecting low-flying targets and guiding S-75 air defense missiles. The older P-10 systems, 20 of which entered service in 1953-1960, have a maximum detection range of 250 km, and another five relatively newer P-20 radars with the same detection range are elements of the radar field system. It includes at least 300 fire control radars for cannon artillery.

It is unlikely that the North Koreans have only these systems. North Korea often finds ways to circumvent international sanctions designed to prevent new weapons systems from falling into their hands.

Operational Doctrines

The actions of the DPRK Air Force, whose number reaches 100,000 people, are determined by two main provisions of the basic doctrine of the North Korean army: joint operations, integration of guerrilla warfare with the actions of regular troops; and “war on two fronts”: coordination of operations of regular troops, guerrilla actions, as well as actions of special operations forces in the depths of South Korea. From this follow four main tasks of the Air Force: air defense of the country, landing of special operations forces, tactical air support of ground forces and navy, transport and logistics tasks.

Armament

The solution to the first of the four tasks, air defense, lies with fighter aircraft, which consists of approximately 100 Shenyang F-5 fighters (a Chinese copy of the MiG-17, 200 of which were received in the 1960s), the same number of Shenyang F-6 / Shenyang F-6С (Chinese version of the MiG-19PM), delivered in 1989-1991.

The F-7B fighter is the Chinese version of the later MiG-21 variants. 25 MiG-21bis fighters remain in service, which are the remnants of those 30 former Kazakh Air Force vehicles illegally purchased from Kazakhstan in 1999. The DPRK Air Force received at least 174 MiG-21s of various modifications in 1966-1974. Approximately 60 MiG-23s, mostly modifications of the MiG-23ML, were received in 1985-1987.

The most powerful fighters of the DPRK are the MiG-29B/UB, those that remained from the 45 purchased in 1988-1992. Approximately 30 of them were assembled at the Pakcheon aircraft plant, which was specifically designed to assemble this type of aircraft. But the idea failed due to an arms embargo imposed by Russia following disputes over payments.

North Korean ingenuity is undeniable, and there is no reason to believe that, given the regime's emphasis on military issues, they cannot maintain aircraft that have long since been destined for scrap metal, as is the case with Iran. Of these aircraft, only the MiG-21, MiG-23 and MiG-29 are armed with air-to-air missiles: 50 R-27 (purchased in 1991), 450 R-23 (delivered in 1985-1989) and 450 P-60 purchased at the same time. More than 1000 R-13 missiles (the Soviet copy of the American AIM-9 Sidewinder) were received in 1966-1974, but their service life should have expired by now. Additional deliveries may have taken place in violation of international sanctions.

The strike force is represented by up to 40 Nanchang A-5 Fantan-A attack aircraft delivered in 1982, the remaining 28-30 Su-7B fighter-bombers acquired in 1971, and up to 36 Su-25K/BK attack aircraft received at the end 1980s The DPRK maintains in flight condition a significant number (80 or more) of Harbin H-5 front-line bombers (a Chinese copy of the Soviet Il-28), some of which are the reconnaissance modification of the HZ-5.

Direct support for the troops is provided by most of those delivered in 1985-1986. 47 Mi-24D helicopters, of which only 20 are estimated to remain in combat-ready condition. They, like the Mi-2 helicopters, are armed with Malyutka and Fagot anti-tank missiles, produced in the DPRK under Soviet license.

Some of the N-5 bombers are equipped to launch the North Korean version of the Chinese CSS-N-1 anti-ship cruise missile, designated KN-01 Keumho-1. The missile has a firing range of 100-120 km, 100 were fired in 1969-1974. In 1986, five Mi-14PL anti-submarine helicopters were received, but their current condition is unknown.

It is believed that the DPRK has UAVs in its arsenal, and it is also known that the Russian Malachite complex with ten Shmel-1 tactical UAVs was purchased in 1994. It will not be a surprise to learn that Pyongyang used them as models for the development of its own UAVs.

Logistics support is provided by Air Koryo, a state-owned carrier but also a transport wing of the DPRK Air Force. Today, the airline's fleet consists of a single Il-18V (delivered in the 1960s), as well as three Il-76TD (in operation since 1993). Other types of aircraft are represented by seven An-24, four Il-62M, the same number of Tu-154M, a pair of Tu-134 and Tu-204. The company also operates an unknown number of helicopters. Although their primary purpose is military, they carry civilian registration, which allows them to fly outside the DPRK.

There are currently no clear signs that North Korea is modernizing its aircraft, despite a high-level North Korean procurement delegation visiting Russia last August.

Missile defense

Of course, the DPRK's air defense system is based on three main pillars - air defense systems. This is the S-75 air defense system, in 1962-1980. 2,000 missiles and 45 launchers were delivered, and this system is the most numerous. Many of them have recently been deployed near the 38th parallel, and most of the remaining ones protect three corridors - one along Kaesong, Sariwon, Pyongyang, Pakchon and Sinuiju on the west coast. The other two run along the east coast between Wonsan, Hamhung and Sinpo, and between Chongjin and Najin.

In 1985, 300 missiles and eight S-125 air defense missile launchers were delivered, most of them covering high-value targets, especially Pyongyang and military infrastructure. In 1987, four launchers and 48 S-200 air defense missiles were purchased. These long-range systems for medium and high altitudes use the same targeting radars as the S-75. Four regiments armed with this type of air defense system are deployed next to their counterparts equipped with the S-75 air defense system (optimized for combating high-altitude targets).

Another numerous type of air defense system is the KN-06 - a local copy of the Russian two-digital air defense system S-300. Its firing range is estimated at 150 km. This truck-mounted system was first publicly displayed at a military parade marking the 65th anniversary of the founding of the North Korean Workers' Party in October 2010.

Considerable effort is being expended to make it more difficult to destroy missile systems and associated radars from the air. Most of North Korea's early warning, target tracking and missile guidance radars are located either in large underground concrete bunkers to protect against weapons of mass destruction or in dug-out mountain shelters. These facilities consist of tunnels, a control room, crew rooms, and blast-resistant steel doors. If necessary, the radar antenna is raised to the surface by a special elevator. There are also many decoy radars and missile launchers, as well as alternate sites for the SAMs themselves.

The DPRK Air Force is also responsible for the use of MANPADS. The most numerous are the Strela-2 MANPADS, but at the same time in 1978-1993. Approximately 4,500 North Korean copies of the Chinese HN-5 MANPADS were delivered to the troops. In 1997, Russia transferred to the DPRK a license to produce 1,500 Igla-1 MANPADS. "Strela-2" is a first-generation MANPADS that can only be targeted by radiation in the near-infrared range, mostly engine exhaust gases. On the other hand, Igla-1 is equipped with a dual-mode (infrared and ultraviolet) guidance head, which can be aimed at less powerful radiation sources emanating from the aircraft's airframe. Both systems are optimized for use against low-flying targets.

Speaking about air defense artillery systems, it should be noted that their backbone is the 100-mm KS-19 guns developed in the 1940s. 500 guns of this type were delivered between 1952 and 1980, followed by 24 more guns in 1995. More lethal are the approximately 400 self-propelled anti-aircraft guns - 57 mm ZSU-57 and 23 mm ZSU 23/4, received in 1968-1988. This arsenal covers large cities, ports, and large enterprises. The DPRK has also developed its own self-propelled 37-mm anti-aircraft gun, called the M1992, which is strongly reminiscent of Chinese models.

The state is a rogue

The available weapons made it possible to create one of the most dense air defense systems in the world. The emphasis on air defense systems and cannon artillery is a direct result of Pyongyang's inability to acquire modern fighters or even spare parts for the antiques that make up the bulk of the North Korean Air Force. Probing of the positions of China and Russia in 2010 and 2011 was rejected by both countries. A pariah state on the world stage, the North Korean People's Republic has developed a reputation for not paying for goods already delivered, and even China, which has been North Korea's longtime ally and facilitator, is showing irritation with its southern neighbor's behavior. Much to Beijing's displeasure, it is deliberately abandoning the creation of a market economy of the same type that proved so successful during reforms in China.

Maintaining the status quo and continuing the oppression of their people are the main driving forces of the DPRK leaders. It turns out that it is much cheaper to create or threaten to create nuclear weapons that can harass and threaten potential external aggressors than to buy and maintain modern military forces. The North Korean leadership quickly learned lessons from the fate of Colonel Gaddafi, who gave in to Western demands and destroyed its nuclear capabilities and other types of weapons of mass destruction, joining the “good guys” club.

Korean Peninsula

The second task facing the DPRK Air Force is to deploy special operations forces to the Korean Peninsula. It is estimated that there are up to 200,000 people in the North Korean army who are called upon to carry out such a task. The landing is largely carried out by 150 An-2 transport aircraft and its Chinese counterpart Nanchang/Shijiazhuang Y-5. In the 1980s About 90 Hughes 369D/E helicopters were secretly purchased to circumvent sanctions, and it is believed that today 30 of them are still capable of taking off. This type of helicopter makes up a significant portion of South Korea's air fleet, and if special operations forces infiltrate south of the border, they could cause confusion among the defenders. Interestingly, South Korea also has an unknown number of An-2s, presumably with similar missions.

The next most common type of helicopter in service in the People's Democratic Republic of Korea is the Mi-2, of which there are about 70. But they have a very small payload. The veteran Mi-4 is probably also in service in small quantities. The only modern types of helicopters are the Mi-26, four copies of which were received in 1995-1996. and 43 Mi-8T/MTV/Mi-17, at least eight of which were obtained illegally from Russia in 1995.

Should we be afraid of North Korea?

The North Korean military exists solely to defend the Fatherland and threaten to invade South Korea. Any such invasion would begin with a massive low-altitude attack from the South, with special operations forces being dropped across the front lines by air to "knock out" strategic assets before a ground offensive across the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Although such a threat may seem fantastic due to the state of the DPRK Air Force, it cannot be completely discounted. The importance South Korea places on its own defense is evidence of this. Over the past twenty years, four new North Korean air bases have been established near the DMZ, reducing flight time to Seoul to just a few minutes. Seoul itself is a major target, one of the world's largest cities with a population of more than 10 million. More than half of South Korea's population lives in the surrounding metropolitan area of ​​Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, which is the second highest in the world: 25 million people live here and most of the country's industry is located.

There is no doubt that even if the conflict results in huge losses for the North, it will also be devastating for the South. The shock to the global economy will also be severe. It is worth mentioning that at the end of 2010, when the North shelled the South Korean island, there were also large-scale maneuvers during which a large-scale air raid was practiced, which was supposedly an imitation of a large-scale war. The result was somewhat of a farce, as the exercise included aircraft collisions, poor reliability, weak command and control, and a haphazard plan.

No one can say in which direction the modern leader of the DPRK, Kim Jong-un, will lead the country, and to what extent he is just a puppet in the hands of the old guard who have usurped power. What is certain is that there are no signs of change on the horizon. And the world community looks at the country with suspicion, and the latest nuclear tests on February 12, 2013, only strengthened it in this regard.

Combat composition of the DPRK Air Force. According toAirForcesIntelligence with amendments from the AST Center

Originalpublications: Air Forces Monthly, April 2013 - Sérgio Santana

Translation by Andrey Frolov

Air Defense and Aviation of North Korea presented
KN-06 aka 번개-5호 aka Pon"gae-6 - 16 S-300 PT vehicles were purchased in an unnamed country along with documentation for the production of 5V55KD missiles. Simply technologically they can only do this. Then an art deco processing was done. To hide where the firewood is coming from. A radar simulating the radar from the HQ-9 and S-300B is just an imitation and an illumination emitter. Real guidance occurs from the 5N63 installation, which stands aside :). The missile reserve is already more than 200 missiles. What the S-300 PT can do ? 6 target and 12 missile channels. Range from 5 to 75 km, height up to 27 kilometers. The acquisition took place by barter - slaves in the Russian Federation in exchange for complexes from Ukraine. :)
S-200 75 missiles BUT how many of them will fly is a big question, they are not in production, and the resource has long expired. Most likely, if the pair takes off already steeply. So purely radar.
S-125 300 missiles and the same BUT.
S-75, but these 11D missiles are in production in both versions. There are a total of 180 launchers, and more than 2,000 missiles in stock. The disadvantages of this system are that radio command guidance is well jammed. Range up to 34 km, at altitude up to 27 km. The speed of the rockets is Mach 3. This is the main air defense of the DPRK.
There were 75 S-25 missiles in 1961, but none of this has been around for a long time. These are essentially purely locator stations. How many of them are workers...
Kub-M1 - there were 18 pieces. Why was it? Because missiles for them are not produced. So this is also a purely radar with mock-ups.
Buk-M1 - 8 pieces from an unnamed country. There are no docks for rockets. 50 rockets were sold. Capable of hitting aircraft from 3 to 35 km, missiles - 25 km at an altitude of 22 km, maximum target speed 800 m/s. Julia? You? How can you :) .
The DPRK also produces copies of the 9K38 Igla MANPADS with a range of up to 5 kilometers. They could even be seen in Syria. In total, more than 1000 complexes were manufactured, but most of them were sold.
Old arrows are available. But they will fire from them with a force of 100 or even less.
there are 1200 barrels of 23 mm anti-aircraft guns (in assemblies of 2,4,6,8) and the production of cartridges for them.
Aviation
of all Aviation, the real threat is
MiG-29 is 30 9-12A aka MiG-29A vehicles and 5 9-51 aka MiG-29UB vehicles without radar. Of which approximately 23 vehicles are combat-ready. There are also sufficient reserves of ammunition for them. Which is updated a little through the illegal market.
MiG-23 is 48 MiG-23MF and 8 MiG-23UB vehicles. BUT.... Of these, 18 MiG-23MF are combat-ready. And two MiG-23UB can take off and land.
Su-25 is 26 simple and 8 UB. Almost all of them fly, but these are still attack aircraft.
The rest is flying garbage, most of which are no longer flying originals and Chinese copies of the MiG-15, MiG-17, MiG-19, MiG-21, Il-28, Su-7, An-2. They are only suitable for museums, or as flying targets. In total, there are 700 such targets listed in open media. Which of course is complete nonsense. MiG-15 and MiG-17 - 60 years old. Their engines have long since exhausted their resources. If a few pieces go up for a museum look, that’s already cool. MiG-19 45 years old. here, well, two dozen can take off. IL-28 is the same. There were fewer of them. Su-7 was not enough if one took off steeply. There were officially 26 MiG-21s. But spare parts for them can still be obtained easily. That's why there are 20 of them flying. But which one is a rival for the F-16 or F-15K... funny. An-2... corn farmer... with a machine gun... arctic fox. In total, there are 80 such aircraft targets in the sky, if they are lifted into the sky, it will be a fascinating shooting of targets :).
So there are 41 vehicles that can actually fight in the air. 43 vehicles that can try to show attack and die. That's all the Air Force.
Oh yes, helicopters.
Mi-24 is listed as 20, flies 12. Mi-14 is listed as 8 flies as 3. Mi-8 is listed as 40 flies as 32. Polish copies of the Mi-2 as listed as 46, flies 12.
But the main helicopter is unexpectedly the American MD500, also known as the Hughes OH-6 Cayuse, and yes, it is produced in the DPRK. How do you like these pies? The backbone of the North Korean helicopter force is the AMERICAN MILITARY helicopter. At the same time, the DPRK sold not only the helicopters themselves, but also a complete set of technical documentation, including for the Allison Model 250 engine. In my opinion, this is enchanting :). Armament: two blocks of 70 mm nurses with 7 missiles each. Or two 12.7 mm machine guns. Either other NURS blocks of similar size and weight, or 4 Cornet-type ATGMs. 5 passengers.
At the moment, 96 cars have been produced and all are active. The armament of this helicopter, of course, has nothing to do with air defense, but it can be quite unpleasant for the enemy. The DPRK has no problems with NURS since they are not difficult to manufacture and are being produced.
The fleet has practically no air defense and is represented only by anti-aircraft machine guns and even those are only 300 barrels.
From the above, from the point of view of air defense, only kits provided in the course of cooperation with the Russian Federation pose a serious threat.
Namely, S-300PT disguised as KN-06 up to 75 km, Buk-M1 up to 35 km, and S-75 up to 34 km. In addition, 41 MiG-29 and MiG-23 aircraft have a full range of ammunition. In addition, for low-flying targets at altitudes up to 5 km, the danger is posed by the high saturation of Igla-1 type MANPADS, 43 Su-25 and MiG-21 aircraft and 140 OH-6, Mi-24, Mi-8 helicopters.
However, this state of affairs is only due to the repair problem existing in the DPRK. The DPRK has its own CNC machines and they were supplied to the Russian Federation. However, the level of materials science is at the level of the 1970s and has failures. This leads to the fact that not everyone can manufacture engine parts for the MiG-23 in the DPRK. There are also technological failures - the DPRK cannot repair the radar of the MiG-29, but can repair it of the MiG-19. They can repair any body part of the MiG-29, but they are not able to repair the engine. They can make the Allison 250 engine, but they cannot do anything with the engine for the MiG-21.
The key fields for the DPRK are materials science, engine physics, locator technology, and their related industries - that is why so many students from the DPRK study it. When they master this, they will need a number of equipment that they have already purchased and are purchasing. Then they will be able to lift many of the grounded cars. However, this will increase the number of dangerous cars by only 80%.
But time is not the only thing on North Korea’s side. The thing is that the DPRK has mastered the production of serious missiles that increase the radius of the DPRK's air defense from 35 to 75 kilometers. And it’s a matter of time when there will be more.
Already at the moment, the Republic of Korea itself is not capable of suppressing the DPRK’s air defense without serious losses. However, for a coalition with a powerful fleet and ground segment, which will increase the concentration of air defense destruction means by five times, it will be possible to block the DPRK within the territory of the North, preventing a breakthrough through the DMZ not only by land but also by air.
The forces of the coalition, in the form in which it is possible, if a war occurs within a year of the current one, is enough to destroy aviation in three days of fighting, helicopters in a month, suppress air defense in a month in a safe battle mode. However, this requires massive missile strikes on North Korean territory. What the Republic of Kazakhstan does not have enough strength to do on its own. A much higher saturation of air defense in the region is needed - which would allow southern and Coalition aircraft to fly safely. Otherwise there will be losses.

The exact date and place of their holding are unknown

On the morning of Sunday, May 28, it became known about test launches of new missiles aimed at intercepting enemy drones or missiles.

“Like lightning, (the missile) instantly smashed the enemy’s drone and missile into dust,” a voice-over comments on the launch.

Earlier it was reported that North Korea tested a new air defense system. The exact date and place of their holding are unknown.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attended the tests. After that he has elements of the system. Kim Jong-un emphasized that it is necessary to develop a new system in maximum quantity so that it covers the entire country like a forest." He also noted that the new air defense should "deprive enemies of the illusion of their air supremacy."

Let us remind you that to increase pressure on North Korea.He will join American aircraft carriers"Carl Vinson And Ronald Reagan, which are already in the area of ​​the Korean Peninsula.