송상호
| 2023-04-10 17:07:32
(LEAD) new frigate-launch ceremony
(LEAD) S. Korea launches new frigate with enhanced anti-sub capabilities
(ATTN: RECASTS throughout; CHANGES photo)
SEOUL, April 10 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Monday held a ceremony launching a new 3,600-ton frigate with reinforced anti-submarine and anti-air capabilities, the Navy and the state arms procurement agency said.
The ceremony for ROKS Chungnam, named after a central province, took place at the shipyard of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in Ulsan, 410 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to the armed service and the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).
Some 150 people attended the event, including Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lee Jong-ho and DAPA Minister Eom Dong-hwan.
"ROKS Chungnam will be an example of our efforts to build a military based on science and technology, and a sturdy foundation for the strong maritime forces," the defense minister said in a congratulatory speech.
The 129-meter-long vessel is the first ship built as part of Seoul's frigate acquisition program, code-named FFX Batch-III, under which the nation plans to build a total of six 3,600-ton frigates to replace aging frigates and corvettes.
It is equipped with a 5-inch gun, anti-ship guided missiles, tactical ship-to-ground guided missiles and long-range anti-submarine torpedoes, as well as a homegrown "multifunctional phased array radar" system capable of detecting and tracking multiple targets from "all directions."
Following testing procedures, the frigate is to be delivered to the Navy in December next year. It is expected to go into service in late 2025, according to officials.
South Korea has typically named frigates after the country's provinces and metropolitan cities. Its Navy ran a vessel with the name Chungnam twice before, including the frigate decommissioned in 2017.
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