'Icheon Advanced Defense Drone Festival' Opens... Runs Until the 21st

The '2025 Icheon Advanced Defense Drone Festival,' planned by Icheon City in Gyeonggi Province with the goal of becoming a cutting-edge drone city, opened on the afternoon of the 20th at Icheon Sports Complex.

This two-day event, running until the 21st, is the region's first specialized drone festival that publicly showcases the latest advancements in drone technology and demonstration capabilities to citizens.

At the 'Icheon Advanced Defense Drone Festival' opened on the 20th at Icheon Sports Complex, Kim Kyunghee, Mayor of Icheon (left), is visiting a company booth and listening to an explanation about drone technology. Provided by Icheon City

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A total of 35 domestic and international companies are participating in the festival, setting up more than 40 booths. The main exhibition areas include surveillance and reconnaissance, loitering munition and simulated drop systems, industrial multifunction drones, overseas military drones, and anti-drone systems.

During the event, live demonstrations will be held every 30 minutes, featuring surveillance and reconnaissance flights, autonomous return, simulated drops, industrial structure approaches, and drone detection and interception, allowing citizens to witness advanced drone technologies firsthand.

The venue also offers hands-on programs for citizens and youth, such as drone assembly, flight experiences, education on flight principles, and obstacle flight challenges. A drone soccer tournament is also available for citizen participation.

The festival also features events in the semiconductor sector, which is a strategic industry for the city, including a Semiconductor Academy Experience Zone, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Semiconductor Dream Class, and a Semiconductor Bus. Approximately 1,800 students from 15 local schools are participating in these programs.

At the opening ceremony, an investment promotion briefing was held with the participation of the city, military units, and companies.

The drone industry is a future strategic sector that Icheon City is actively fostering. To this end, the city established a 'drone flight testbed' last year, enabling companies to test and verify their technologies in real-world conditions.

This year, Icheon secured the foundation to launch full-scale city-level demonstration projects by being selected for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's 'Drone Demonstration City Development Project.' Recently, based on this foundation, the city began operating a pilot drone delivery service in the areas around Seolbong Park and Subyeon Park.

Kim Kyunghee, Mayor of Icheon, stated, "With this festival as a turning point, we will further expand the advanced industry ecosystem and develop Icheon into a central city for technology demonstration and industrial collaboration."

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