The South Korean government is to spend 260 billion won ($247.1 million) over the next eight years on a project to develop high-speed unmanned aerial vehicles.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is looking to commercialise two tilt-rotor ‘drones’ — one a standard model and the other equipped with enhanced functions. Its plan was unveiled during a meeting held at the state-run Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) in Daejeon.

Local aircraft manufacturers such as Korea Aerospace Industries, Samsung Techwin and LIG Nex1 attended the event and made a number of recommendations.

Speaking at the meeting, Vice-minister Kim Jae-hong said: “The unmanned aerial vehicle is an area where Korea can vie with advanced nations’ aerospace industries. Starting with the South Korean tilt-rotor, which is one of our ministry’s 15 most-important industrial growth engines, we will actively support the technological development of next-generation aircraft.”

The tilt-rotor drone takes off and lands vertically and can remain airborne for up to 5hr, it is claimed. “Its powerful engine allows the UAV to fly at 500kph — five times faster than a drone from North Korea.” KARI developed the prototype and finished trial operations in 2012 after a decade spent on the project, which was backed by about 97 billion won from the government.