KF-21 Boramae.

Technical Data

• Design

  The KF-21 Boramae is a twin-engine combat aircraft designed to combine aerodynamic performance, payload capacity, and reduced radar signature. Its configuration includes two canted vertical stabilizers, swept wings, and a fuselage shaped to reduce radar reflections. The aircraft measures approximately 16.8 to 16.9 m in length, with a wingspan of 11.2 m and a height of 4.7 to 4.8 m. Wing area is 46 m². Empty weight is 11,793 kg, while maximum takeoff weight is 25,401 kg. The KF-21 has ten external hardpoints, six under the wings and four under the fuselage, providing a maximum external payload of 7,700 kg. Block I and Block II aircraft use these stations for missiles, bombs and other mission equipment. Internal fuel capacity is approximately 6,000 kg. Range reaches 2,900 km, while combat radius varies according to mission profile, weapons load and aircraft configuration. The Block I configuration is centered on air-to-air operations and provides the initial combat standard for the ROKAF. Block II expands the aircraft’s mission set by integrating a broader selection of air-to-ground weapons and strike functions without introducing a separate airframe variant.

• Armament

  The KF-21 is equipped with an internal 20 mm M61A2 Vulcan rotary cannon supplied with 480 rounds. For air-to-air combat, its weapons include the MBDA Meteor long-range missile, IRIS-T for short-range engagements, AIM-120 AMRAAM, and AIM-9 Sidewinder. Meteor provides the KF-21 with a beyond-visual-range engagement capability and was incorporated into the aircraft’s flight-test and weapons-integration program. South Korea is also developing a domestic long-range air-to-air missile for the KF-21. The Agency for Defense Development is conducting the program from 2026 to 2033 with a budget of KRW 753.5 billion. Korea Aerospace Industries and Hyundai Rotem signed an agreement on August 12, 2026, covering the development of airborne weapons, their integration with the KF-21, and the preparation of export packages combining the aircraft with South Korean weapons. Hyundai Rotem is working on the missile’s propulsion system around a ducted-ramjet architecture, while KAI is responsible for integration with the KF-21’s AESA radar, mission computer and weapons management system. The program is intended to provide the aircraft with a domestically developed long-range air-to-air weapon alongside existing foreign missile types. For air-to-ground missions, the KF-21 employs guided munitions including the GBU-12 Paveway II, GBU-31 JDAM, GBU-38 JDAM, GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb, GBU-54 LJDAM and South Korean KGGB guided bombs. Block II expands the aircraft’s air-to-ground capabilities through the integration of precision missiles and longer-range weapons. The platform is also intended to receive South Korean systems including the Cheonryong air-launched cruise missile and the K-ARM anti-radiation missile, together with other weapons for strike missions.

• Engines

  The KF-21 is powered by two General Electric F414-GE-400K afterburning turbofan engines assembled in South Korea by Hanwha Aerospace. Each engine produces approximately 97.9 kN, or about 22,000 lbf, with afterburner. The aircraft reaches a maximum speed of approximately Mach 1.8, or close to 2,200 km/h, and has a service ceiling of 16,764 m.

• Avionics and Onboard Equipment

  The KF-21’s avionics suite is built around a South Korean-developed Active Electronically Scanned Array radar. The AESA radar provides airborne target detection and tracking, supports long-range air-to-air engagements and performs air-to-ground functions. The radar is integrated into the KF-21 mission system alongside the aircraft’s other sensors. It forms part of the long-range air-to-air engagement chain, covering target detection, tracking, firing-solution calculation and data exchange with the weapon. The KF-21 also incorporates an Infrared Search and Track system, an electro-optical targeting system and an electronic warfare suite. These systems provide passive detection, identification and targeting capabilities as well as protection against electromagnetic threats. The aircraft’s electronic architecture allows the progressive integration of additional weapons, sensors and mission systems. This architecture supports the capability changes introduced between Block I and Block II and provides the basis for subsequent KF-21 developments. The future KF-21 Escort Jammer concept extends this architecture toward an escort electronic warfare role. KAI’s roadmap includes technologies intended to support electronic attack missions in conjunction with other crewed and uncrewed combat platforms. The KF-21EX development path extends the architecture toward a lower-observable configuration with internal weapons carriage and closer integration with South Korea’s future collaborative air combat system.