First Korean leisure sport aircraft KLA-100 takes maiden flight

GOHEUNG, South Jeolla Province -- The first two-seater light aircraft developed in Korea took its initial flight Thursday at Goheung Aviation Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province.

The Korea Light Aircraft-100 was developed by a team of researchers from display parts maker Vessel and Konkuk University, supervised by the Transport Ministry. The project had attracted investments of 27.9 billion won ($24.8 million) from September 2010 to develop the plane, which is designed to fulfill growing demand for leisure aircraft.

“As you know, this is the second aircraft to be developed by the private sector in Korea following a four-seater light aircraft. This is the first leisure sports aircraft, and was developed through an unprecedented project bringing together academia and small businesses,” said Konkuk University President Min Sang-gi.

The KLA-100 has a light body made of carbon composite that was 620 kilograms and can fly up to 245 kilometers per hour. It can fly up to 4,267 meters and stay in the air for up to six hours. Priced at 150 million won, it is cheaper than foreign counterparts, which are priced at around 180 million won, opening up possibilities for exporting the aircraft to other countries.

In Korea, where the leisure aviation industry is still nascent, the next steps will be building aviation centers at various points around the country that can support light aircraft and make pilot licensing more accessible. Vessel’s chief executive says the company may begin offering licensing programs as early as September this year.

According to Kim Chi-boong, chief engineer of the aerospace division at Vessel, the goal is to build about 20 planes next year, eventually expanding to about 150 annually -- with about 100 of them exported to other countries as well.

The first target is China, where Vessel currently exports 95 percent of its products and already has a sales network in place. “In 2016, the Chinese government announced that it would begin construction to connect the major provinces through light aircraft routes,” said Seo Ki-man, CEO of Vessel. “We expect the largest provinces to be connected by the end of this year, and we want to move quickly in that market. After China, we are looking at Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines -- island countries that are currently heavily dependent on ships but will move towards airplanes.” 

By Won Ho-jung (hjwon@heraldcorp.com)