Breaking News: South Korea Launches HCX-23 Plus Drone Carrier Concept to Redefine Naval Warfare.

At MADEX 2025, a naval defense exhibition that takes place in Busan, South Korea, from 28 to 31 May 2025, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HD HHI) revealed the HCX-23 Plus, a revolutionary next-generation naval platform concept. The unveiling of this hybrid drone carrier highlights South Korea's strategic pivot toward autonomous maritime operations and advanced unmanned system integration, as the country reassesses its naval force structure in light of delays to its traditional CVX aircraft carrier program.
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Scale model of South Korea’s HCX-23 Plus drone carrier concept on display at MADEX 2025 in Busan. Designed by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, the vessel features a flush flight deck with no island superstructure, reflecting a bold shift toward AI-driven, unmanned naval operations. (Picture source: X account 315th_IGNIB)

The HCX-23 Plus stands as the most ambitious design in the HD HHI HCX series. Unlike conventional aircraft carriers, this vessel is optimized for unmanned and AI-supported operations. With a striking, angular silhouette and stealth-enhancing geometry, the HCX-23 Plus eliminates the traditional island superstructure entirely, instead utilizing an internally housed, AI-driven command and control suite. The vessel's flush deck extends across the full length of the hull, offering two separate operational zones: an open launch and recovery area aft for fixed-wing UAVs, and a recessed forward section potentially dedicated to VTOL drone operations. This configuration reflects a decisive shift toward future naval engagements that prioritize autonomous assets.

The ship model presented at MADEX 2025 displayed key structural innovations, including sharply faceted surfaces that reduce radar cross-section, a broad and stable hull form ideal for supporting drone flight operations, and low-observable black and grey coatings above the waterline. Below, the hull is painted red, indicating a high-performance underwater profile. The side hull sections also hint at modular payload bays or potential vertical launch systems, suggesting multi-mission adaptability.

The HCX-23 Plus represents a significant evolution in HD HHI's conceptual approach, emphasizing integration of artificial intelligence and unmanned systems to enhance operational efficiency and adaptability in modern maritime warfare. Designed as a hybrid manned-unmanned platform, it is envisioned to operate alongside other pioneering vessels such as the Mobile Unmanned Command Ship and a fleet of Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USVs). This points to HD HHI's broader commitment to shaping a fully integrated and networked maritime battlefield.

Its futuristic, stealth-optimized design further supports South Korea’s growing ambition to become a leader in drone-based naval power projection. The absence of a bridge island, combined with an enclosed sensor suite, underscores a departure from legacy aircraft carrier architectures. The expansive flat-deck layout, devoid of superstructures, improves both radar signature reduction and deck management for launching various classes of unmanned aerial systems.

The HCX-23 Plus is expected to fulfill a multi-domain role across surveillance, electronic warfare, airspace denial, and rapid-response strike missions. Its architecture suggests the incorporation of AI-driven logistics and mission planning systems, allowing real-time battlefield adaptation with minimal human oversight. As the CVX aircraft carrier program remains in a state of reevaluation due to budgetary and strategic challenges, the HCX-23 Plus offers a flexible, scalable, and technologically superior alternative that could redefine South Korea's blue-water ambitions.

In this light, the HCX-23 Plus is more than a ship. It is a strategic vision of naval autonomy, power projection, and future warfare. Its debut at MADEX 2025 places HD Hyundai Heavy Industries at the forefront of naval innovation, setting a new benchmark in the design of unmanned naval platforms tailored to 21st-century combat requirements in Northeast Asia and beyond.