Local defense company LIG Nex1 appointed Shin Ick-hyun, a retired Korean Air Force officer and current vice president at the firm, as the new CEO.

He will begin his term from Jan.1 next year, with the appointment process to be finalized at the board meeting and shareholder meetings in March, the company said Tuesday.

LIG Nex1's new CEO Shin Ick-hyun / Courtesy of LIG Nex1

Shin has been promoted from his current vice president position, succeeding incumbent CEO Kim Ji-chan, who has been heading the company since 2018. Kim will move on to an advisory position.

Shin began his military career in 1984. He served in various roles, including as an administrative official of the presidential security strategy office in 2007, commander of the 8th Fighter Wing in 2010 and director of strategic planning division at the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 2013.

He retired from the military in 2015 and joined LIG Nex1 in December 2017 as a strategic planning specialist.

At the defense company, Shin took on major positions such as director of surveillance and reconnaissance business and head of C4ISTAR.

Given Shin's background, his appointment to the CEO position is seen as LIG Nex1's move to focus on expanding its business in surveillance systems and the aerospace electronics sector.