South Korea has developed the core technology for radar-evading stealth fighters and is preparing for a test flight of a fighter equipped with the technology, WAM news agency reported Monday.

It has been nine years since the Agency for Defence Development (ADD) and other South Korean defence research institutes began developing stealth fighter technology in 1999, the report quoted Yonhap News as saying.

The ADD successfully conducted a test flight of a miniature fighter equipped with the technology late last year, an official said, refusing to reveal whether the core technology is based on a coating or an alloy.

The ADD is preparing for a test flight of an F-4 fighter equipped with the technology, according to the official.

South Korea has a plan to begin purchasing up to 60 stealth fighter jets, like F-22s or F-35s, in 2012 for deployment until 2019.

In addition to the plan of purchasing stealth fighters from abroad, South Korea also plans to secure the stealth technology, another official said, noting that 'China, Russia and Japan are striving to secure the stealth technology and apply it to their weapons systems with the aim of securing command of the air in north-east Asia.'

'We hope to develop all the core technologies for embodiment of functional stealth by mid 2010,' he said, adding South Korean defence research institutes have already developed part of the technology for designing fighters and naval vessels for effective evasion of radar and radio waves.