As drone threats become a reality, national standards for performance testing have been established to support the introduction of anti-drone systems at critical national infrastructure. With testing methods for the entire spectrum of anti-drone equipment—from detection to neutralization—now standardized, it is reported that a foundation for systematic response at major facilities such as power plants and airports will be established.

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS, Director Kim Dae-ja) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 29th that it has enacted and published the national standard 'KS W 8100' containing test methods for the operational performance of equipment constituting anti-drone systems. The standard can be viewed at e-National Standard Certification (www.standard.go.kr) starting from today.

This standard specifies test methods to verify whether equipment constituting an anti-drone system, such as radar, RF scanners, EO/IR cameras, and jammers, is properly equipped with drone detection capability and range, identification accuracy, and neutralization capabilities.

According to the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards, while drone threats have rapidly become a reality in recent conflicts such as those in Ukraine and Iran, there have been difficulties in introducing anti-drone systems for critical national infrastructure due to the lack of standardized testing methods.

This standard was jointly developed by the Korea Testing Laboratory with experts from industry, academia, research institutes, and the military through the Civil-Military Standardization Project of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration and the Defense Technology Quality Agency starting in 2021.

Verification was completed through two industry public hearings and four demonstration tests conducted by the National Intelligence Service and the Counter-Terrorism Center.

Based on the establishment of this standard, relevant ministries, including the National Intelligence Service, plan to accelerate the establishment of a certification system for anti-drone systems.

The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS) stated that this standardization and certification system, being promoted as part of the 'National Drone and Anti-Drone Transformation Promotion Strategy,' is expected to contribute to resolving security gaps in critical national infrastructure and fostering a domestic anti-drone corporate ecosystem.

Kim Dae-ja, Administrator of the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS), stated, “The domestic anti-drone equipment industry is still in its early stages, and we expect this standard to contribute to technological advancement and the creation of an ecosystem by providing fair criteria,” adding, “We will continue to actively support standardization activities through cooperation with relevant ministries.”