LIG Defense & Aerospace (LIG D&A) will jointly develop a guided rocket propulsion system with Firehawk, a U.S. defense startup.
LIG D&A said on the 14th that it signed a teaming agreement with Firehawk to cooperate on developing the propulsion system for the 2.75-inch Bigung guided rocket at the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) annual defense exhibition held in Washington on the 13th. The two companies will also explore follow-on mass production and further cooperation once development is complete. They agreed to conduct joint marketing in the U.S. and promotion targeting the U.S. government.
Firehawk was founded with the goal of transforming rocket propulsion using advanced three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. An LIG D&A official said the agreement would strengthen the company's push into the U.S. market, noting that Bigung had already proved its capabilities by passing the U.S. Defense Department's Foreign Comparative Testing program at the 2024 Rim of the Pacific exercise, the world's largest naval drill.
Baek Hyung-sik, head of LIG D&A's overseas business division, said it was meaningful that Bigung, originally developed through joint efforts by South Korea and the U.S., would again be developed with an American company. "We will make sure the cooperation between the two companies delivers results, based on the experience and know-how LIG D&A has accumulated over its 50 years," the executive said.
Will Edwards, co-founder and chief executive of Firehawk, said the partnership connects two of the startup's core priorities — expanding munitions production capacity and advancing solid rocket motor manufacturing. He added that it would allow the companies to offer more affordable options to the U.S. and its allies in air and missile defense.