Hanwha Aerospace Posts 36.7 Billion Won Loss in Third Quarter of 2026
Key Facts
Hanwha Aerospace posted a net loss of 36.7 billion won from July to September 2026, after recording net profit of 699 billion won in the third quarter of the previous year, according to a regulatory filing cited by The Korea Times, which quoted Yonhap. The shift put the third-quarter result in negative territory after the company was profitable in the same period a year earlier. Annual revenue fell 6% to 6.09 trillion won, while operating profit dropped 46.2% to 452 billion won. The figures show declines in revenue and operating profit alongside a swing from net profit to a net loss. The company attributed part of the weaker performance to changes in the timing of weapons deliveries, while losses from a program linked to GTF engines weighed on its aerospace business.
The company said deliveries of K9 self-propelled howitzers to Poland were delayed until the fourth quarter, pushing revenue from those shipments out of the third quarter. Some weapons deliveries, meanwhile, were completed ahead of schedule in the second quarter, moving part of the deliveries into an earlier period and affecting the distribution of performance across quarters. A Hanwha Aerospace official said the third quarter was affected by "delivery schedule adjustments and one-off expenses." The official added that results "will improve clearly starting in the fourth quarter." The comments link the weak quarter to delivery timing and expenses, while the company expects the impact of the shipment schedule to reverse in the following period.
The land defense business generated revenue of 1.24 trillion won and operating profit of 21.7 billion won in the third quarter. The company’s backlog stood at 35 trillion won at the end of September, alongside the quarterly decline in results. In the aerospace business, revenue reached 659.9 billion won, but it posted an operating loss of 2.4 billion won. The report linked the loss to increased deliveries of GTF engines to the customer and the resulting larger losses under a risk-and-revenue-sharing program with U.S. engine maker Pratt & Whitney. The contrast between a profit in land defense and a loss in aerospace reflects differing performance across the company’s two businesses during the same period.
Fourth-quarter recovery expectations are based on planned deliveries of K9 howitzers and Chunmoo launchers to Poland, as well as progress on K9 projects in Egypt and Australia, The Korea Times reported, citing Yonhap. These factors include shipments delayed from the third quarter, as well as other projects the company said would support an improvement in earnings. Against the backdrop of demand for Chunmoo systems, Hanwha Aerospace announced on September 14 that it had signed a 411.8 million euro contract with Croatia’s Ministry of Defense to supply 18 launchers, with deliveries continuing through 2030. The contract sets out supply commitments spanning several years, while the company’s near-term expectations focus on fourth-quarter deliveries to Poland and progress on K9 projects. The official said improvement would begin "clearly" in the fourth quarter, while losses from the GTF engine program remained part of the aerospace business’s reported third-quarter performance.