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🇰🇷 South Korea /Conflict & Security

Self-Destruct Drone Crashed Due to Warped Launch Tube Door, Military Investigation Finds

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Outcome reported
  • A self-destruct drone developed by South Korea's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) crashed during a naval combat experiment due to a warped launch tube door.
  • The investigation found that a misaligned door on the lower launch tube caused a deformation from the drone's thrust, leading to instability and the crash.
  • Despite the incident, the ADD plans to conclude the project as scheduled next month, having secured core technologies through previous ground tests.

An investigation by South Korea's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) has determined that a self-destruct drone crashed during a naval combat experiment on August 25 due to a defect in its launch system. The drone, developed by the ADD, was undergoing sea-launch combat testing when the incident occurred.

The initial analysis of the cause of the sea crash of the self-destruct drone indicates it was due to deformation damage caused by misalignment of the left opening door of the launch tube.

— ADD OfficialExplaining the findings of the preliminary investigation into the drone crash.

According to an ADD official, the initial analysis revealed that the drone's crash was caused by a "misalignment issue with the left opening door of the launch tube." This misalignment resulted in deformation damage due to the drone's thrust during launch. The launch tube in question was part of a stacked, multi-barrel system, with the defect identified in the left door of the lower tube.

The left door of the lower launch tube had a misalignment. When the drone was launched from the upper tube, the drone's thrust momentarily pushed the lower launch tube door inward, causing an imbalance in the propulsive force.

— ADD OfficialDetailing the specific mechanism of the launch tube defect.

When the drone was launched from the upper tube, the force exerted by its propulsion momentarily pushed the door of the lower tube inward. This imbalance in thrust caused the drone to veer sharply to the right, leading to a loss of control and its subsequent crash into the sea. The drone, described as a medium-sized, 3-meter-wide unmanned aerial vehicle, utilizes rocket propulsion for initial acceleration and then relies on its propeller for gliding.

This is the first time such a problem has occurred, despite dozens of previous launch tests using this launcher.

— ADD OfficialHighlighting the unusual nature of the launch tube defect.

ADD officials stated that the structural deformation of the launch tube door occurred only momentarily during the launch and returned to its original state immediately afterward, making it difficult to detect at the scene. They believe the misalignment likely occurred during the disassembly and reassembly process when transporting the launcher or loading it onto a naval vessel. Despite this setback, the ADD confirmed that core technologies for operating the medium-sized self-destruct drone have been secured through dozens of previous ground tests, and the project is still on track to conclude next month without further sea-launch tests.

It appears the launch tube misalignment occurred during the process of disassembling and reassembling the launcher for transport or loading onto a naval vessel.

— ADD OfficialSpeculating on when the misalignment might have occurred.
About this summary

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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