[Personnel] KASA Restructures Organization Centered on Launch Vehicles and Satellites

Strengthening Program Accountability for Lunar Lander, Navigation and Communication Satellites, and Next-Generation Aircraft

The Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA) has carried out an organizational restructuring aimed at clarifying the missions of each program within its Space and Aerospace Mission Headquarters and enhancing project execution capabilities. The previous mission-assurance-centered structure has been reorganized into business unit programs, such as launch vehicles, satellites, space exploration, and next-generation aircraft, thereby strengthening a work-focused system.

On March 31, KASA announced the organizational restructuring along with new appointments at the section chief level. The core of this reorganization is the adjustment of program names and work assignments in four areas—space transportation, satellites, space science exploration, and aviation innovation—to better align with the nature of each business.

In the space transportation sector, the existing Space Transportation Mission Assurance Program has been reorganized into the Korean Launch Vehicle Program, and together with the Reusable Launch Vehicle Program, the functions for promoting launch vehicle projects have been strengthened. In the satellite sector, the Satellite Mission Assurance has been changed to the Earth Observation Satellite Program, and the existing Korean Satellite Navigation Development Program has been reorganized into the Navigation and Communication Satellite Program, further detailing the roles for each satellite application area.

For space science exploration, the existing Space Science Exploration Mission Assurance has been transformed into the Space Science Program, and together with the Lunar Lander Program, capabilities for deep space exploration missions have been enhanced. In the aviation innovation sector, the Aviation Innovation Mission Assurance has been reorganized into the Aviation Materials and Components Program, and in connection with the Next-Generation Aircraft Program, the execution capacity for next-generation aviation industry technology development has been reinforced.

With this restructuring, new section chiefs have been appointed: Park Sungwon as Head of the Satellite Mission Design Program, Kim Eunghyun as Head of the Earth Observation Satellite Program, Lee Byungseon as Head of the Navigation and Communication Satellite Program, Kwon Jihoon as Head of the Space Science Exploration Mission Design Program, Kang Hyunwoo as Head of the Space Science Program, Kim Kisuk as Head of the Aviation Innovation Mission Design Program, Choi Mijin as Head of the Aviation Materials and Components Program, and Lee Gwangbyeong as Head of the Next-Generation Aircraft Program.

Through this restructuring, KASA has established a clearer system of responsibility for each key national project, including the Korean launch vehicle, reusable launch vehicle, earth observation satellite, navigation and communication satellite, lunar lander, and next-generation aircraft. The speed of project implementation and the accountability of each program are expected to be further strengthened in the future.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.