The Korean-Style Goalkeeper
Although the Navy officials had more questions, they decided to save them for later once President Park announced that the second phase of the test was about to begin. They turned their attention back to the controller.
“This is the controller! Calling the Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong!”
At the controller’s call, the communications officer of the Ryu Seong-ryong responded.
“This is the Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong!”
“The test preparation for the Korean-style Goalkeeper is complete. Please proceed with the Haeseong missile launch.”
“Understood.”
After receiving the report, the captain of the Ryu Seong-ryong sighed, lamenting that Starlink had established an overly ambitious test evaluation plan.
“Even with an AESA radar, is it really possible to intercept three anti-ship missiles at once?”
The officer in charge of armaments replied to the captain’s sigh.
“Captain! Starlink wouldn’t have requested this if they weren’t confident, would they?”
“I’ve only seen the written materials for the Goalkeeper’s evaluation, and I know it’s rated for a maximum of two targets. It just seems too reckless! Well, we’ll see once we run the test. Is everything ready?”
“Yes. The coordinates provided by Starlink match the position of the barge detected on radar. You only need to give the order.”
The captain, who had been deep in thought, checked the cameras aimed at the Haeseong missile launchers and the status of the missiles. Since opportunities for live-fire testing were rare, he issued the command.
“Confirm the presence of any nearby fishing boats!”
“Captain! There are no fishing boats detected on radar.”
For today’s test, the Navy had prohibited fishing activities around the West Coast test range. Upon hearing there were no vessels, the captain gave the order to prepare for launch.
“Prepare to launch three Haeseong missiles!”
Following the captain’s order, the weapons officer confirmed the target on the radar screen—the barge—and reported completion.
“Preparation complete!”
“Launch three Haeseong units!”
“Fire!”
As the missiles launched from the Ryu Seong-ryong, a slight vibration rippled through the ship. The crew focused on the ship-wide broadcast from their respective battle stations. Three Haeseong missiles launched in sequence, and as the mid-deck area where the launchers were located became engulfed in smoke, the captain focused on the trajectory of the missiles.
The Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong was over 100km away from the barge. If the Haeseong missile launch failed during this test, it would be a major issue for the Navy, so the captain prayed that no problems would arise. He had set five waypoints for the missiles; as they reached each point, they changed direction and flew toward the barge.
The staff member in charge of the Goalkeeper’s radar was responsible for calling out target information to assist the evaluation, as the system’s main computer handled everything automatically. When the targets appeared at the 100km mark, he made an urgent report over the communication network.
“Target detected at 100km! Enemy missiles incoming!”
A moment later, as all three missiles were launched, symbols appeared on the radar. The main computer began classifying the three Haeseong missiles by threat level. As the missiles passed their waypoints and their distances to the barge changed, the computer re-analyzed the threats and adjusted the priorities.
The Haeseong missiles began their approach to the barge, flying close to the water’s surface using their sea-skimming capability. As the distance closed, the captain of the Ryu Seong-ryong did a final check with the armaments officer.
“Two sea-skimming, one pop-up maneuver, right?”
“Yes, Captain! Starlink requested that we mix the flight patterns as much as possible to make interception difficult, so we added a pop-up maneuver.”
“We’re almost at the target now. We’ll have our answer soon!”
While the captain focused on the radar, the three Haeseong missiles approached the barge. The Goalkeeper’s turret had already turned toward the missile classified as the number one threat.
“Haeseong missiles at 30km!”
The radar operator clenched his fists as he called out the distance to the identified missiles. On an Aegis ship, the RAM-116 missile usually handles interception before the target enters the Goalkeeper’s range, with the Goalkeeper serving as the final line of defense. Today, however, they were testing under harsher conditions to verify the Goalkeeper’s performance, which kept everyone on edge.
The Korean-style Goalkeeper updated its threat assessment as the missiles closed in, minutely adjusting the turret toward the highest-priority target. On the computer screen, the threat rankings were updated in real-time.
“Final threat ranking change! Two missiles are now simultaneously classified as priority one!”
As one of the sea-skimming missiles soared upward 5km out, the main computer momentarily classified two missiles as priority one. The turret’s Gatling gun aimed first at the missile that had popped up into the sky.
The Ryu Seong-ryong had calculated the timing so that two missiles would arrive at the barge simultaneously. The computer raised the gun to intercept the missile performing the pop-up maneuver, and as it passed the 3km mark, it immediately opened fire.
The Gatling gun fired for one second, but when the impact point didn’t form correctly, it re-adjusted and began firing again. The Haeseong missile performing the pop-up maneuver was intercepted at the 1.9km mark.
“Enemy missile one intercepted!”
At the staff member’s shout, the attendees watched the missiles approaching via sea-skimming. The Goalkeeper quickly lowered its barrel, poured fire at the sea-skimming Haeseong missile for 1.5 seconds, and then immediately turned to fire its 30mm Gatling gun at the final missile.
Just as the sound of the 30mm shells could be heard faintly from afar, the radar operator’s voice rang out.
“Enemy missile two intercepted! The final one is approaching. Distance 1km!”
With his words, the Goalkeeper turned its turret and poured shells into the target. On the TV screen, flames erupted, and the staff member’s voice followed.
“The final missile has been successfully intercepted!”
The attendees cheered and applauded as all three were intercepted simultaneously. President Park In-tak and Taesik, who had been tense, stood up and joined the applause. After checking the final interception distance data, the staff member reported:
“Final target intercepted at a distance of 200m!”
The attendees were amazed by the performance, which far exceeded their expectations. As President Park In-tak stepped up to the podium, the applause began to die down.
“The test evaluation of the Korean-style Goalkeeper developed by Starlink Defense has concluded successfully. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.”
Among the Navy officials, a Lieutenant Commander who hadn’t been able to ask a question earlier stepped forward.
“The effective range of a 30mm gun is 2km. How were you able to succeed in the interception?”
“The Korean-style Goalkeeper is equipped with an automatic impact adjustment system. It is programmed to begin pre-interception before the target enters the effective range to buy time. By firing early, we can gain an extra second or two compared to waiting until the 2km mark.”
“Earlier, two missiles approaching via sea-skimming were classified as priority one simultaneously. What is the principle behind determining the priority?”
“You are aware that a missile arriving via a pop-up maneuver is unlikely to sink the ship on its own. However, a missile arriving via a pop-up maneuver can cause issues for the radar and fire control systems, so it was assigned priority. The main computer made the judgment itself because the Goalkeeper’s radar must remain functional to allow for additional interceptions.”
“The detection range using the AESA radar was quite significant. Isn’t that an overly high-spec radar to be mounted on this?”
“Hahaha. You think the AESA radar we developed is too high-spec?”
At President Park’s words, the attendees smiled lightly. As the stiff atmosphere thawed, he continued.
“Are you familiar with the Biho-Complex?”
“Starlink intends to integrate RAM missiles into the Korean-style Goalkeeper in the future. We are currently developing missiles with different specifications, and we plan to begin development once the air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles for next-generation aircraft are completed.”
“Then, couldn’t you add other armaments instead of the Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) currently mounted on Aegis ships?”
“That is correct. As much space as we save, we can increase the number of vertical launch cells. We will strive to showcase it within three years.”
“Earlier, when intercepting the second missile, you began targeting the next one regardless of whether the previous interception was successful. Isn’t that too dangerous?”
“To the naked eye, it looked like the success of the interception hadn’t been determined yet, right? Shall we take a look at the actual data? For your reference, it is designed so that the computer makes judgments without human intervention, so I think I need to show you the event log to explain it.”
President Park instructed a staff member to display the event log from the test. The staff member operated the terminal and pulled up the data.
“The interception happened at 14:55, right?”
As the staff member displayed the event log at the requested time, a tracking message appeared, showing that the main computer had declared the interception a success and was tracking the next missile with a 0.1-second difference.
After confirming the event data, President Park said:
“It looked like an unsuccessful interception to the naked eye, didn’t it? In reality, it was a success. Since it is difficult for a human to judge missile interceptions, the CIWS is designed for the computer to make its own decisions. In particular, the Korean-style Goalkeeper is equipped with AI software, making it faster than existing systems. For your reference, if the Navy conducts further tests and accumulates more data, we can optimize the interception methods for specific missile types.”
“I heard that the existing Goalkeeper and the one developed by Starlink are compatible. How much are you estimating for the cost of upgrading the existing Goalkeeper?”
“We are eager to receive a high price, but I believe the final amount will be determined after the Defense Acquisition Program Administration conducts a cost verification.”
“You mentioned AI software. Is it possible to disclose it?”
“This Korean-style Goalkeeper development project is a weapon developed under Starlink’s leadership. We can disclose the parts and software necessary for operation and maintenance, but the AI software is restricted. If we disclose core technologies, we won’t have a way to make a living.”
At President Park’s witty remark, the government officials chuckled, and a Navy Admiral asked a question.
“By any chance, can you provide the footage and data captured during this interception? The Korean Navy hasn’t been able to conduct sufficient live-fire training due to budget issues, so the data collected this time will be helpful for Aegis ship operations.”
“We will provide whatever you need.”
“And can you speed up the development of integrating the RAM missiles with the Goalkeeper as you mentioned earlier?”
“…….”
“The Navy is planning for the next-generation Aegis ships, and I mention this because if the RAM missile launcher can be removed, we can improve the ship’s spatial layout.”
“Ah! I will check our internal schedule and let you know.”
Having concluded the Korean-style Goalkeeper test evaluation, Taesik encouraged his staff and, while heading up to Seoul, received an urgent call from President Jo Yun-je of Starlink Aviation.