In a move that will benefit the country and reduce costs, it was confirmed that South Korea will build its own maintenance facilities for its F-35A stealth fighters. Currently, the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) operates with 39 of these units after acquiring 40 F-35A between 2019 and 2022, however one of them was retired due to high repair costs after suffering a collision.
It is worth highlighting that the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) signed a letter of acceptance with the US government to acquire another 20 additional units for the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF), whose delivery is scheduled from 2027. , according to Lockheed Martin.
In this framework, the DAPA stated that the second phase of this program includes provisions for South Korea to establish its own facility for heavy airframe maintenance, repairs, overhauls and upgrades, as well as stealth coating. It is expected that they will be completed before 2027.
The goal of the construction is to initially eliminate the need for long-term maintenance overseas, thereby reducing aircraft downtime as well as operating and maintenance costs. Once completed, the country will become the third country in Asia-Pacific to have an F-35 maintenance facility, after Australia and Japan.
On the other hand, regarding the maintenance of the F-35A that the Air Force has, the United States gave it permission to carry out small maintenance tasks, while larger jobs are delegated to a regional repair base.
It may interest you: With the participation of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, the US, Japan and South Korea held a naval exercise in the East China Sea
