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Thales to modernise airport surveillance in Muan, Ulsan and Yeosu Airports for a safer and efficient sky

• Thales has been awarded a contract by Korea Airports Corporation (KAC) to deliver airport surveillance radar systems comprising the STAR NG primary surveillance radars, co-mounted with the latest digital secondary surveillance radar - the RSM NG, for the three airports.
• The new-generation radars will replace the existing Thales radars, providing the latest surveillance technology available in the market to help strengthen South Korea’s domestic air travel network and renew confidence in air travel.
• These airports will be the first in Asia to receive the latest RSM-NG radar, launched by Thales.

In the second quarter of 2021, South Korea’s domestic air travel surpassed pre-pandemic levels as more people travelled within the country amidst ongoing restrictions on international travel. As Korea heads towards a rebound in domestic air travel, having the latest in airport surveillance technology will ensure that travellers continue to have smooth and safe journeys throughout the country.

As Korea Airports Corporation (KAC) seeks to modernise Air Traffic Management infrastructure throughout Korean airports, Thales, in a consortium with Hanjin Information Systems and Telecommunications (HIST), was awarded a contract to deliver three next-generation airport surveillance radar systems in the southern cities of Muan, Ulsan and Yeosu.

The radar systems comprise of Thales’ state-of-the-art STAR NG primary surveillance radars co-mounted with the latest version of RSM NG secondary surveillance radars, offering the highest levels of detection performance, reliability, and cybersecurity to help meet the airports’ needs for surveillance and safeguard passenger wellbeing.

The STAR NG also provides additional functionalities that include altimetry, slow or fast target detection and windfarm filters. The RSM NG is a 2-in-1 meta-sensor, with fully integrated EnHanced Mode S and ADS-B sensors, providing faster track initialisation and detection, with the latest in cybersecurity protection and Health Usage & Monitoring System (HUMS) for optimised maintenance and life cycle costs. With more than 900 Air Traffic Control radars installed in over 100 countries, Thales is a trusted leader in the global market.

Within the scope of the contract, Thales will provide the radars, handle installation as well as provide factory and site trainings for the maintenance and support of the radars and associated equipment to KAC teams, whilst HIST will provide the network infrastructure, communication links, support to the installation and overall project management. By 2024 all three airports are expected to have completed full modernisation of the current Thales systems installed in the early 2000’s.

“Domestic air travel trends in Korea are showing encouraging signs of recovery and Thales stands ready to support our customers as they look for ways to instil passenger confidence in flying again. Ensuring that airport surveillance systems are reliable and cyber-secure is key and being able to help KAC modernise their systems in three key southern airports in Korea is testament of Thales’ long-standing expertise in air traffic management solutions. Having been present in Korea for the last 40 years, I am confident that we will continue supporting South Korea’s ambitions as the civil aerospace sector recovers,” said Sandy GILLIO, Country Director, Thales in Korea.