PT PAL's cooperation partner in the construction of the Nagapasa class submarine, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering's (DSME), last Thursday (30/3/2023) held a ceremony at Okpo for the construction of the latest generation of diesel electric submarines for the South Korean Navy, namely the keel laying of the first KSS-III Batch II submarine, or what will be known as the Jang Bogo class.
DAPA (Defense Acquisition Program Administration) has awarded a contract to DSME in October 2019 for the construction of the first submarine KSS-III Batch II in October 2019, followed by the steel plate cutting stage in May 2021, and is currently entering the keel laying stage. .
KSS-III Batch II will feature various improvements from its predecessor, KSS-III Batch I (Dosan Ahn Changho class). The upgrades include more advanced combat management systems and sonar systems, increased firepower, including the addition of an additional Vertical Launch System (VLS). This will allow the KSS-III Batch II to be loaded with more Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBM), which are locally known as derivatives of the Hyunmoo missile which has a range of 500 km.
According to the same source, Dosan Ahn Changho's Batch-I KSS-III class submarines will be equipped with 6 VLS, while the Batch-II and Batch-III submarines will be equipped with 10 VLS. KSS-III has a displacement of 3,358 tons when it appears on the surface and 3,705 tons when it sinks. These submarines have a maximum speed of about 20 knots, a cruising range of 10,000 nautical miles (18,520 km) and can accommodate a crew of 50.
DAPA said in a press release, "adequately applying new technologies to new generation submarines will maximize their operation and ease of maintenance for the crew on board."
As South Korea eyes possible export of KSS-III Batch II in the future, many important components of the ship including Air Independent Propulsion (AIP), Lithium-Ion battery, and (Korean Vertical Launching System) have been developed domestically. Unlike the previous generation of South Korean submarines, which still relied predominantly on component supplies from foreign parties.
According to DSME, 80 percent of the KSS-III Batch-II ship components will be produced domestically, a significant increase compared to the previous model. This is expected to create jobs and make ships more competitive in the export market.
However, some components will be manufactured overseas, with Spain's Indra and France's ECA Group providing signals intelligence system and steering consoles respectively.
Rear Admiral Kim Tae-Hoon, who is in charge of the program, emphasized that “KSS-III Batch II is the second generation of 3,000 ton class submarines to be designed and built with domestic technology, and it will be a great opportunity to once again demonstrates South Korea's pre-eminence in its shipbuilding industry."
The first ship KSS-III Batch II will be launched in 2025. After several years of trials for ROC (Required Operational Capabilities), the first delivery of the ship to the South Korean Navy is planned for 2027.
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