South Korea Shows Hyunmoo-5 Ballistic Missile Test Revealing Strikes on Deep Underground Targets.

South Korea released rare test footage of the Hyunmoo-5 ballistic missile showing its cold launch, engine ignition, and transition into powered flight. The footage provides a clearer view of a conventional strike system designed to engage hardened and deeply buried military targets.

The sequence shows the Hyunmoo-5 being ejected from its canister before the main engine ignites, followed by stabilizer deployment as the missile enters its ballistic trajectory. The missile is intended to give South Korea a mobile ground-launched option for striking underground command facilities, missile sites, and other protected targets without relying on air-delivered bunker-penetrating weapons.

Related News: South Korea deploys Hyunmoo-5 bunker-buster ballistic missile to deter North Korea

South Korea’s Hyunmoo-5 ballistic missile during a test launch sequence designed to demonstrate its conventional strike capability against hardened and deeply buried targets. (Picture source: KFN video screenshot)

According to information released by South Korean authorities for the 78th Armed Forces Day on October 1, 2026, the Hyunmoo-5 is among the main conventional systems developed to engage protected North Korean strategic infrastructure. Its operational deployment began in late 2025 after the start of serial production and is expected to continue in phases until completion under the administration of President Lee Jae-myung. Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back confirmed in October 2025 that Seoul was also seeking to substantially increase production quantities.

The Hyunmoo-5 is a two-stage solid-fuel ballistic missile carried in a cylindrical canister mounted on a nine-axle mobile launcher. Available estimates place its launch mass at around 36 tonnes, with a length of approximately 15 to 20 meters and a diameter close to 1.6 meters. The missile uses a cold-launch sequence, with an initial ejection from the canister before main engine ignition, an architecture that reduces stress on the launcher and facilitates movement after firing.

The Hyunmoo-5's defining feature is its unusually heavy conventional warhead. South Korean sources generally cite a payload of around eight tonnes, while some estimates put it at nine tonnes. In this bunker-penetration configuration, its range is generally assessed at around 300 km. Reducing the warhead mass would allow the missile to reach considerably greater distances, with several open-source estimates referring to ranges of several thousand kilometers. These figures vary according to flight profile and payload and are not officially detailed performance parameters released by Seoul.

The missile therefore emphasizes mass, accuracy, and kinetic energy rather than broad-area blast effects. Its warhead is reportedly composed largely of dense materials intended to maximize energy transfer on impact, with a smaller explosive component designed to act after penetration. Open-source estimates attribute a very high terminal velocity and accuracy measured in a few meters, although these figures have not been officially confirmed. The concept is intended to transmit enough energy through rock and reinforced concrete to damage or collapse underground facilities even when complete tunnel destruction is not achieved.

Development of this capability dates back to the early 2010s, when Seoul was seeking improved options against North Korean underground infrastructure. Bilateral restrictions governing South Korean missiles had long limited both warhead weight and authorized ranges. Restrictions on warhead mass were removed in 2017, followed by the end of the remaining limits in 2021, allowing a program already progressing through subsystem development to move faster. By late 2023, development had advanced sufficiently for preparations for serial production, ahead of the missile’s public presentation in its complete configuration.

For South Korean forces, the system provides a ground-based strike option against buried command facilities, strategic storage sites, missile installations and complexes built beneath rocky terrain. Solid-fuel propulsion reduces pre-launch preparation requirements, while the mobile launcher allows units to disperse before firing. This combination enables commanders to engage fixed high-value targets rapidly without relying on a penetrating air mission or the availability of bombers carrying bunker-penetrating weapons.

The Hyunmoo-5 is integrated into South Korea’s Three-Axis system, particularly the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation component intended to provide a conventional retaliatory capability after a North Korean attack. Ahn Gyu-back has stated that Seoul intends to secure enough high-power missiles to sustain deterrence in response to North Korea’s nuclear threat, while the military plans to build a stockpile that could eventually include several hundred Hyunmoo-5 missiles and successor systems. The current deployment therefore indicates that serial production and unit-level integration are progressing in parallel. For South Korea, which does not possess nuclear weapons, the missile provides a conventional means of concentrating severe effects against precisely designated underground targets while expanding a strike architecture closely tied to the evolution of North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile forces.

Written By Erwan Halna du Fretay - Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Erwan Halna du Fretay holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and has experience studying conflicts and global arms transfers. His research interests include security and strategic studies, particularly the dynamics of the defense industry, the evolution of military technologies, and the strategic transformation of armed forces.