LIG Defense & Aerospace (LIG D&A) is simultaneously enhancing the digital and export competitiveness of the defense industry through the adoption of AI technology, the expansion of global partnerships, and support for the K-defense small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) and venture ecosystem.

Record-High Q1 Performance... Driven by Cheongung-II and KF-21 Mass Production

LIG D&A recorded an operating profit of 171.1 billion won on a consolidated basis in the first quarter of this year, a 56.1% increase compared to the same period last year. Revenue rose by 28.7% to 1.1679 trillion won, and net income increased by 69.5% to 135.4 billion won. The order backlog reached 25.31 trillion won, of which export projects accounted for approximately 14 trillion won and domestic projects for about 11 trillion won.

The strong performance was driven by the full-scale reflection of revenues from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Cheongung-II project, as well as guided weapons like Cheongung and Haegung and the KF-21 mass production program driving sales in the avionics and electronic warfare sectors. The Cheongung-II, currently operated by the UAE, was recently deployed in actual combat for the first time during the Iran war, recording a high interception success rate. LIG D&A plans to establish a local subsidiary in the UAE within the year to accelerate the promotion of its Middle East business.

First Export of Haegung Secured... $9.4 Million Contract with Malaysia

On April 22, LIG D&A signed an export contract for the Haegung with the Malaysian Ministry of Defense at the DSA 2026 defense exhibition held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The contract amount is $9.4 million (approximately 14 billion won). Haegung, an indigenous ship-to-air missile developed under the leadership of the Agency for Defense Development in 2011, intercepts various airborne threats, including anti-ship missiles and aircraft, and has proven its reliability with the South Korean Navy. With this export, the Haegung will be equipped on the Malaysian Navy's offshore patrol vessels built by Turkish defense company STM.

At the same event, LIG D&A also signed an MOU with South African defense company Milkor for technological cooperation in the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) sector. The plan is to combine LIG D&A's Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar and Electronic Warfare (EW) equipment with the next-generation UAV platform currently under development by Milkor to complete a turnkey integrated unmanned system capable of performing surveillance, reconnaissance, and precision strikes.

First Domestic Defense AI Hackathon... Agentic AI Attack and Defense Competition

LIG D&A will host the Defense Agentic AI Hackathon (DAH), the first competition of its kind in the domestic defense sector. Participants will develop AI models using real-world data and be evaluated in a virtual cyber battlefield environment at this competition, which seeks ways to solve defense industry and cybersecurity problems using AI technology. It will be held in an attack-and-defense format where AI agents autonomously make judgments, execute actions, and carry out attacks and defenses.

Applications can be submitted via the official website until the 14th of next month, and the teams that pass the preliminary round will compete in the finals on August 21 at the SKY31 Convention in Jamsil's Lotte World Tower. The total prize money is 20 million won, and winners will receive preferential hiring benefits. An LIG D&A official stated, "The accumulated technology and data infrastructure will serve as the foundation for accelerating the enhancement of K-defense's digital competitiveness and the realization of an intelligent Manned-Unmanned Teaming (MUM-T) combat system."

Building a Startup and Partner Ecosystem... Regularizing the Tech Summit

LIG D&A held its 1st Tech Summit on April 27 at Lotte World Tower in Songpa-gu, Seoul. Twenty startups that received investments from the Defense Innovation Fund and 32 partner companies participated to showcase innovative technologies such as AI satellite image analysis (DaviO), swarm autonomous flight control (Pablo Air), and defense and space 3D printing (Ringsolution), discussing potential commercialization. LIG D&A CEO Shin Ik-hyun stated, "The essence is to learn speed and a challenging spirit from startups and realize them on top of the solid production base of our partners." He added, "We will pave the way so that companies with innovative technologies do not despair in the face of the high barriers of the defense industry, and we will take the lead in the growth of K-defense through the launch of Fund No. 2."

K-Defense SMEs and Ventures' Global Expansion in Partnership with KOSME

LIG D&A signed an MOU with the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME) for the overseas market expansion of K-defense SMEs and ventures. The agreement involves jointly identifying and nurturing SMEs and ventures with high potential for overseas expansion, supporting their entry into foreign markets and early local settlement, and providing consulting for localization development and production. KOSME Chairman Kang Seok-jin said, "Based on KOSME's infrastructure and policy support capabilities, we will support the overseas expansion of defense companies and the enhancement of supply chain competitiveness."

Third-Party Allocation Paid-In Capital Increase of 2 Billion Won for DYC

DYC will conduct a third-party allocation paid-in capital increase worth approximately 2 billion won. A total of 1,235,331 shares of common stock will be issued as new shares at 1,619 won per share, and all new shares will be allocated to LIG D&A. DYC plans to use this capital increase to raise funds for the acquisition of other corporate securities.