Ministry of Industry Discusses Enhancing Aviation, Aerospace, and Defense Cooperation with US Boeing

by Kang Heejong

Published 16 Apr.2024 07:57(KST)

The appearance of a Boeing 747 passenger aircraft

On the 16th, Lee Seung-ryeol, Director General of Industrial Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, met with Patty Changchien, Vice President of Research & Technology (R&T) at Boeing, a U.S. aircraft manufacturer visiting Korea, and discussed ways to advance cooperation in the aerospace and defense sectors.

At the meeting, Director Lee requested Boeing's cooperation to ensure that the future aviation technologies currently being jointly developed by Boeing and Korean companies with support from the ministry?such as the 'Smart Cabin' and the 'AI System for Civil Aircraft Health Diagnosis'?can be successfully introduced into Boeing's passenger aircraft in the future.

Boeing mentioned that since establishing the 'Boeing Korea Engineering & Technology Center' (BKETC) in Korea in 2019, they have created a precedent for mutually beneficial investment by hiring over 110 domestic experts, and promised their cooperation.

Furthermore, Boeing stated that based on the R&D cooperation Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed with the ministry in April last year, they plan to expand employment in fields such as AI and software (SW) in Korea and increase international joint R&D.

Boeing intends to expand the BKETC to about 300 employees and cooperate with the ministry in areas including advanced aircraft production systems, core technologies for Urban Air Mobility (UAM), and aerospace semiconductors.

Director Lee emphasized that hiring Korean talent, a powerhouse in software and information and communication technology (ICT) manufacturing, and expanding joint R&D investments would be an opportunity that also contributes to Boeing's growth. Additionally, Director Lee proposed regularizing the 'Boeing Supplier Day' event held in Busan last year and stated that the ministry would actively support this initiative.