[Defense Contribution] Marine Aviation Group and Marineon

[Monthly Defense Times Editor-in-Chief An Seung-beom] Finally, the Marine Corps Aviation Unit has been established. It is a revival after 48 years since the disbandment of the Marine Corps Aviation Squadron in 1973.

The Marine Corps Aviation Unit will operate two aviation battalions that operate the Marineon amphibious assault helicopters. Subsequently, one battalion of assault helicopters will also be operated by the Marine Corps Aviation Unit.

With the establishment of the Marineon helicopter operating unit, the Dokdo-class large transport ships will be actively used as amphibious helicopter carriers. As the Marineon amphibious assault helicopters are put into service, the large transport ships Dokdo and Marado will finally function as amphibious assault helicopter carriers.

The Marine Aviation Unit will dispatch Marineon series helicopters to Dokdo-class large transport ships and, in the 2030s, to Korean-type aircraft carriers, playing a key role in three-dimensional amphibious operations. Now that the Marineon amphibious assault helicopters and assault helicopters will be operated on the Dokdo and Marado ships, the Dokdo-class large transport ships will be freed from the unfair ridicule of being mere show ships.

A Marine Corps official stated that one of the reasons for developing and deploying assault helicopters based on the Marineon amphibious assault helicopter is that when both types are deployed on the same Dokdo-class amphibious assault ship or aircraft carrier, much of the subsequent logistics support for the two types can be shared.

The Marine Corps Aviation Unit finds it difficult to operate with dual logistics support systems for assault helicopters and amphibious assault helicopters.

Among the various features of the Marineon amphibious assault helicopter being introduced by the Marine Corps is the advanced 4-channel digital flight control system that precisely controls the rotors, enabling it to maintain hovering above the sea surface even in severe weather. Compared to the Surion, the Marineon maritime operation helicopter has increased internal fuel capacity, which extends the operational radius and endurance time for troop transport missions. Additionally, while designing the Marineon based on the Surion, various maritime operation measures were devised.

Furthermore, the Marineon assault helicopter’s survivability equipment includes a domestically produced EO/IR imaging sensor turret integrated under the nose, known to provide up to 20x zoom in NFOV (Narrow Field of View) mode. The sensors for the MWS (Missile Warning System) and LWS (Laser Warning System) placed on the sides of the Marineon are located under the front door, and the MWS sensor is near the position where the machine gun is mounted.

The Dokdo-class large transport ships, which will operate as carriers for the Marineon amphibious assault helicopters, serve as command and control hubs utilizing large radars, long-range friend-or-foe interrogators, airspace control and early warning through Link 16, maritime and air control within the responsible airspace, and integrated data communication radios. They also manage identification information and position reporting systems for individual amphibious operation deployment platforms.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.