In previous articles, the author talked about a series of stories about the construction and development of the DPRK's armed forces, such as the DPRK's MiG-29 Air Force, the Navy's submarine forces, and so on. Today, let's talk about the field air defense capabilities of the North Korean Army. Seriously, in all aspects of the DPRK army, the lack of field air defense capability is the weakest link of the DPRK army. So, what is the level of the DPRK Army's field air defense capability? Today, we will talk about this issue.
First, let's talk about the components of the North Korean army. At present, the DPRK armed forces are divided into the army, air force, navy, strategic army, special operations army, social security force, and other branches of the armed forces. At the moment, there is no authoritative source about the exact troop figures of the North Korean army. Because North Korea itself has not announced it, foreign institutions can only speculate. At present, it is generally believed that the total strength of the DPRK army is between more than 1.2 million and more than 1.3 million.
Among them, the army is about 900,000 people, which is the absolute main force. Of course, this is speculation from abroad. In terms of military strength, North Korea is one of the few countries in the world that maintains a million-strong army. At present, the standing armies of the mainland, the United States, Russia, India, and other countries are all in the millions. All of the above-mentioned countries are large countries with vast territories, complex tasks, and relatively strong economies, and they need to have a relatively large number of standing armies.
With a total population of more than 26 million, the DPRK relies on a population of more than 26 million to maintain a standing army of more than 1 million. As a result, North Korea introduced standard compulsory military service. Except in special circumstances, young people of school age in the country are required to join the army, and the length of service in the army is significantly higher than that of other countries for 2/3 years. In contrast, a province in the southeast once implemented a long-term four-month military service, which is commonly known as the "four-month good brother". However, in 2024, a southeastern province will also begin to implement one-year military service.
Let's get down to business and talk about the field air defense capabilities of the North Korean Army. In the Russian-Ukrainian wars in 2022 and 2023, the integrated UAVs and cruise missiles shined, especially the attack mode of large groups, and a series of results were achieved. For example, the German Leopard 2A6 series tanks, which are known as the world's top three, were also overturned one after another in the face of Lancet cruise missiles.
Judging from the lessons and lessons of both sides in the Russian-Ukrainian war, it is crucial to further strengthen field air defense capabilities. First, let's take a look at the configuration of field air defense of PLA army units. At present, in the heavy and medium-sized composite brigades of the PLA Army, a relatively complete field air defense network has basically been formed. Among them, the heavy composite brigade is dominated by the Hongqi 17 air defense missile system, the PGZ-04 4-barreled 25-mm self-propelled anti-aircraft gun, and the PGZ-09 double-barreled 35-mm self-propelled anti-aircraft gun.
As for the medium composite brigade, the field air defense system is mainly composed of the Hongqi 17 wheeled anti-aircraft missile system, plus the Type 625 anti-aircraft gun. Whether tracked or wheeled, vehicles need to be able to accompany the troops in mobile operations and provide an air defense barrier for front-line troops. Seriously at the time, it was not easy to be able to achieve this. Whether it is the mainland, the United States, or other world powers, they are all further strengthening tactical tactics against unmanned aerial vehicles and cruise missiles, such as equipping electronic warfare jamming vehicles, and so on.
It has to be said that the DPRK Army is very short of specialized field air defense vehicles, and most of the field air defense vehicles currently in service are basically developed on the basis of the chassis of traditional infantry fighting vehicles and armored transport vehicles.
The mainland once exported a considerable number of Type 63 armored transport vehicles to the DPRK, and on the basis of the Type 63 armored transport vehicles, the DPRK added turrets, twin 14.5-mm anti-aircraft machine guns, and four SAM-7 portable anti-aircraft missiles to form the simplest field air defense system. Note that this is very easy to install and lacks a full set of important equipment and systems such as fire control systems and detection radars.
In addition to the above version, on the basis of the Type 63 armored transporter, the DPRK installed a ZPU-4 type 4 14.5 mm anti-aircraft machine gun in the rear of the vehicle, which adopted an open fighting compartment design, which required manual operation by officers and soldiers. Relying on a 14.5 mm heavy machine gun, it can only meet the air defense mission within 1000 meters. In addition to the installation of anti-aircraft machine guns, the DPRK also installed twin 37-mm anti-aircraft guns on the basis of the Type 63 armored transport vehicle, forming a field anti-aircraft machine gun.
Due to the lack of reconnaissance and detection systems, this series of anti-aircraft guns also needs to be operated manually. Among the various field air defense equipment of the DPRK Army, the most important equipment is the Shilka River air defense machine gun exported to the DPRK by the Soviet Union in the seventies and eighties, which is a classic of a generation and the trump card of the DPRK Army, which is mainly equipped with several elite units. Later, on the basis of the Shilka River, the DPRK launched an imitation and improved model, which basically followed the fire control system and detection and search radar of the Shilka River.
Due to the lack of field anti-aircraft missiles, in order to further pursue the distance and height of air defense, the DPRK has installed a twin 57-mm anti-aircraft cannon on the basis of the chassis of the Shilka River air defense vehicle, which has greatly increased the air defense distance. However, due to the use of a new turret, the lack of a corresponding fire control system and detection radar returned to the mode of manual operation.
In 2018, at the military parade in the DPRK, a fundamentally new field anti-aircraft missile system was introduced. Specifically, the DPRK has installed the Russian SAM-16 portable anti-aircraft missile on the chassis of the MT-LB multi-purpose armored vehicle, and for the first time has a certain field air defense capability.
In addition to the above-mentioned tracked anti-aircraft vehicles, the DPRK has also developed a series of versions on the chassis of the Russian BTR80 wheeled infantry fighting vehicle, which are similar to the versions of the Type 63 chassis. In short, it has a certain field self-defense capability, but its air defense capability is worrisome. The DPRK, relying on its own strength, has introduced a lot of improved models.
It has to be said that the DPRK Army has many models of various air defense vehicles, but in general, most of them are manually operated models, and they lack the necessary detection and search systems. In the course of the war, there was a heavy reliance on information guidance. At the same time, there is a lack of relatively specialized field anti-aircraft missiles, and the number is also clearly insufficient. There is already a big technological gap with the world's first-echelon field air defense forces.
Compared with the DPRK, the ROK Army is equipped with 36 AH64 helicopter gunships and 90AH1 helicopter gunships, and its ground strike capability is quite strong. In particular, the South Korean Army's AH64V6 helicopter gunship, which was only gradually delivered in 2021, belongs to the latest model and is capable of carrying 16 anti-tank missiles, which is a very big threat to ground armored vehicles.
A series of stories about the development of the armed forces of the DPRK, and many more. The author will talk to you slowly in future articles.