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2025 올해의 10대 기계기술 후보 등록…극초음속 미사일·무인기 개발 기대
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The covertly developed hypersonic aircraft 'HyCore' has successfully completed its flight tests and validation. HyCore exceeded its development goal of "sustaining combustion for more than 5 seconds at Mach 5," reaching a maximum speed of Mach 6. Based on this achievement, HyCore has been nominated as a candidate for the 'Top 10 Technologies of the Year in Korea,' an award held by the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers.
The "HyCore" flight vehicle, a research project that ran from October 2018 to June 2024, was developed to create core technology for a "combined-domain flight vehicle." While a passenger jet or cruise missile travels at subsonic speeds (below Mach 1) and a fighter jet can achieve supersonic speeds (between Mach 1.6 and 2.5), HyCore is capable of both supersonic flight (above Mach 3) and hypersonic flight (above Mach 5), making it a "combined-domain flight vehicle."
To achieve this, HyCore's jet engine features a unique dual-ramjet function. It can operate as a
ramjet engine for supersonic flight (Mach 3 or faster) and then transform into a
scramjet engine for hypersonic flight (Mach 5 or faster) as the speed increases.
According to a report submitted to the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers, the HyCore project successfully implemented key technologies to achieve this, including:
- Integrated design technology for high-speed flight vehicles
- Structural technology for high-speed flight vehicles
- Fuel supply technology for high-speed flight tests
- Integrated performance diagnostics technology
- Supersonic combustor technology for flight tests
During its test launch, HyCore reached a maximum altitude of
23 km and a top speed of
Mach 6, exceeding its initial goals of 20 km and Mach 5. To put its speed in perspective, Mach 6 is equivalent to 2.04 km per second, or 7,344 km per hour. If HyCore could fly for one hour, it could travel from Seoul to Kyiv, Ukraine, in that time.
The successful test launch has also led to significant intellectual property gains for collaborators like the Agency for Defense Development and Hyundai Rotem, including three domestic patents, one software registration, and five research papers. The project also produced 43 research and development reports and 47 technical documents.
Another important aspect of HyCore is that it's a test vehicle close to being a weapon system, utilizing already-verified military technology. Unlike similar hypersonic test vehicles in Japan, Australia, and India, Korea's HyCore was launched using components from existing military systems like the KTSSM tactical ballistic missile and space launch vehicle boosters, and was fired from a missile canister rather than a space launch pad.
Currently, the HyCore project has secured core design and engine-based technologies. The next steps include completing the dual-ramjet technology by next spring and acquiring additional core technologies, such as a variable air intake, for the development of a hypersonic missile by November 2028.
It's expected that HyCore's technology could be used to create weapons such as a hypersonic air-to-ground missile for the KF-21 fighter jet or a hypersonic unmanned aerial vehicle. However, the most likely first development is a
hypersonic anti-ship guided missile. Support is currently underway to have this missile reflected in the navy's system requirements. Once completed, a HyCore-based hypersonic anti-ship guided missile is expected to be a powerful "anti-access/area denial" weapon, capable of preventing Aegis-class anti-air destroyers or aircraft carriers with missile defense capabilities from approaching the Korean Peninsula.
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