South Korea will roll-out its KF-X fighter jet prototype around end-April, weeks ahead of schedule, Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in comments quoted in Korean media.

The first prototype is currently in the final stage of assembly. South Korea has been working on the KF-X project since 2015 to develop a 4.5 generation fighter aircraft to replace the Air Force's fleet of F-4 and F-5 jets.

The assembly of the first prototype began in September 2020 by Korea Aerospace Industries Co. (KAI) which is the project lead under guidance of the DAPA.

Completion of ground and flight tests is expected around 2026. Forty units are planned to be delivered to the Air Force by 2028 and another 80 units by 2032, the report said.

While bearing outward similarities to the fifth-generation F-35A, the aircraft is more aligned to the F-16 in terms of performance and features. However, its future iterations will have features of the American stealth fighter.


The aircraft is expected to fly at a maximum speed of Mach 1.81, a range of 2,900 kilometers and maximum payload of 7,700 kilograms. The fighter will contain 10 pods for missiles and fuel tanks. It will be able to carry several types of air-to-air missiles, such as Germany's IRIS-T and MBDA's active radar guided Meteor missiles.


The KAI KF-X is a joint South Korean and Indonesian 4.5-generation fighter aircraft development program with the goal of producing an advanced multirole fighter for the South Korean and Indonesian air forces. The program is led by South Korea, which holds 80% of shares. Indonesia joined in 2010 for 20% (although its ongoing participation is in doubt), and the remainder is held by private partners including manufacturer Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI). The KAI KF-X is South Korea's second domestic fighter jet development program, following the FA-50.

The KF-X development program is also known as Boramae, and in Indonesia is sometimes referred to as IF-X. As of September 2019, prototypes are under construction with the first of these expected to be completed by mid-2021. The first test flight is anticipated in 2022, with manufacturing scheduled to begin in 2026. South Korea expects to deploy 120 of the aircraft into service by 2032.


In February 2019, KAI began production work on the KF-X prototype, with six expected to be completed in 2021. These are to undergo four years of trials, and complete the development process by mid-2026. DAPA anticipated a first test flight in 2022.