January 4, 2009: The South Korean Coast Guard is buying four CN-235-100 transports from Indonesia. The CN-235s were jointly developed by Spain and Indonesia. These two engine transports will be converted to maritime patrol aircraft, and will cost about $23 million each. The 16 ton CN-235 can carry four tons of equipment and stay in the air for about eight hours per sortie. Cruse speed is about 380 kilometers an hour. The search radar can see out to 360 kilometers, and track up to a hundred ships at once. Adding radio and communications equipment for maritime patrol work adds about $10 million to the cost of each CN-235.

Currently the coast guard has fifteen helicopters and one patrol aircraft, so the four CN-235s will be a big boost to coastal patrol capabilities. South Korea has 2,400 kilometers of coastline to watch. But only about twenty percent of that, where Chinese and North Korean fishing boats often work illegally, need to be watched carefully.