How Drones Threaten National Security: Insights from the Latest Counter-UAS Seminar

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The Public — By Oh Hong-ji: On the 17th, Park Sang-hyeok, a professor in the DroneBot Military Studies Department at Jungwon University in Goesan, delivered a guest lecture on counter-UAS systems to undergraduate students in Seoul National University’s Department of Aerospace Engineering.

Invited by Seoul National University, the session aimed to brief the next generation of aerospace professionals on the realities of the drone threat and practical response strategies.

Park warned that as threats expand from low-cost microdrones to tactical unmanned platforms, national security cannot be maintained without integrated counter-UAS systems that can detect, identify and neutralize threats.

He outlined a three-tier integrated approach — detection, identification and neutralization — as the core architecture of such systems, and compared technologies including radar, RF sensors, electronic warfare and directed-energy (laser) systems.

Drawing on battlefield examples such as the Russia-Ukraine war, Park highlighted the cost asymmetry of countering inexpensive drones with costly missiles, arguing that counter-UAS is both a military-technical and an economic-security challenge.

He also cited North Korean drone incursions and identified legal gaps — notably authority to shoot down drones and rules of engagement — as major policy issues.

The approximately 90-minute lecture concluded with a lively Q&A session, reflecting strong student interest.

Park said, “Student engagement is an indicator of the future of South Korea’s counter-UAS capabilities.”

Park is widely regarded as one of South Korea’s leading counter-UAS experts, collaborating with the Ministry of National Defense, Air Force and Army headquarters, and the National Intelligence Service on research and policy advising.