Companies pursue Chunmoo launcher integration on unmanned surface vessels

Collaboration with US firm Magnet Defense underway

The Chunmoo multiple-launch precision-guided weapon system. [Hanwha Aerospace]
The Chunmoo multiple-launch precision-guided weapon system. [Hanwha Aerospace]

Hanwha Aerospace and its US subsidiary Hanwha Defense USA announced Monday that they will conduct two Chunmoo guided-missile firing tests aboard a vessel off the southern US coast this month.

Hanwha Defense USA signed an MOU with US medium unmanned surface vessel maker Magnet Defense in April to jointly develop the MUSV "H38." The two companies are working to integrate a container-mounted Chunmoo launcher onto the H38.

Hanwha Defense USA has been expanding its foothold in the US defense market. Last month, it secured a $269 million contract from ship construction management firm Tote Services to build one medium landing ship for the US Navy and Marine Corps — a milestone reached just two years after Hanwha acquired the Philly Shipyard in 2024.

The company is also pursuing the acquisition of Austal USA, the US subsidiary of Australian shipbuilding and defense firm Austal, to expand its maritime defense business in the United States. Austal USA is one of the key contractors for major US naval vessel programs and has delivered 34 warships to the US Navy to date.

"As confirmed through Austal's public disclosure, we have completed the major due diligence process and are currently in negotiations over the key terms of the contract," a Hanwha Aerospace official said. "We will build an integrated solution encompassing not only manned and unmanned vessel packages but also land-based defense capabilities such as self-propelled artillery and ammunition, in active response to US defense demand."


yeongdai@heraldcorp.com