ROK Navy to increase KDX-III Aegis destroyers to six by 2027

[xhw1986]

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff( JCS) decided Tuesday to increase the number of its 7,600-ton Aegis destroyers from the current three to six by 2027 to strengthen its maritime combat capabilities against possible provocation from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
The JCS said that the planned buildup was aimed at enhancing military capabilities against mounting nuclear and missile threats from the DPRK and potential clashes with neighboring countries, according to local media reports.

The three new Aegis destroyers were expected to raise the number of South Korea's task fleet to three as one fleet usually requires two Aegis-class combat ships.

Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told a routine press briefing that the three Aegis ships, owned now by the South Korean Navy, were in operation under the very tight schedule as the operation usually requires at least four ships.

Partially designed by the South Korean Ministry of National Defense, built by Hyundai Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, the Sejong the Great class Destroyers are the largest surface combatants in the Republic of Korea Navy. The 3 vessels of the class were built as part of the KDX-III project to strengthen ROK Navy defense against North Korea and other emerging threats as well as provide the ROK Navy with true blue water, ocean going capabilities.

ROK (Republic of Korea) Navy to increase KDX-III Aegis destroyers to six by 2027

North Korea Navy...is history.

 

[Penguin]

6 Burke variants to ROK, 6 in Japan. Together with 6 KD2 and 3 KD1 and 10 frigates... while JMSDF is larger in number, ROKN is moving into the big league.

 

[truthseeker2010]

2027? i think it will be much before than that............. and last year they have also ordered 6 more "mini-aegis" so they are really increasing their capabilities.
This sejong the great class is i guess the most heavily armed ship in the world, with 11000 ton full load.... 128 vls cells 16 asm's..... what else you need??

 

[Penguin]

2027? i think it will be much before than that............. and last year they have also ordered 6 more "mini-aegis" so they are really increasing their capabilities.
This sejong the great class is i guess the most heavily armed ship in the world, with 11000 ton full load.... 128 vls cells 16 asm's..... what else you need??

No, the 28,000 ton Russian Kirov's were an remain so, particularly those modernized with current cruise missile and SAMs.
Kirov-class battlecruiser - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

As for KDX-IIA, has it already been decided whether it gets a European or US main sensor fit (Thales Apar + Smart-L, rather than US SPY-1F/AEGIS)? Particularly since the original 6 ships of the class use Thales radars...

 

[Penguin]

The KDX-III Program
...
The program had options for another 3 ships, but the March 2010 sinking of the corvette ROKN Cheonan by a North Korean submarine temporarily shifted the ROKN’s focus away from the globe’s blue waters, and back toward its own littoral regions. Rather than continuing to build more KDX-III destroyers, there was talk in South Korea of modernizing the cheaper 5,000t KDX-II light destroyer design, giving the “KDX-IIA” ships stealthier radar and emissions signatures, and adding AEGIS radars and combat systems to give them better anti-aircraft coverage.

That talk died in 2013, with approval of a KRW 4 trillion/ $3.8 billion program to build another 3 KDX-III ships, and field them from 2023 – 2027.

The key consideration when deciding between KDX-IIA light destroyers and cruiser-sized KDX-III was the tradeoff between having a larger number of modern ships in the water to handle submarines and Fast Attack Craft, vs. fleet capability for potential ballistic missile defense (BMD) missions.

Korea’s KDX-III AEGIS Destroyers

I don't think there will be KDIIA now that there will be more KDIII

 

[truthseeker2010]

No, the 28,000 ton Russian Kirov's were an remain so, particularly those modernized with current cruise missile and SAMs.
Kirov-class battlecruiser - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

As for KDX-IIA, has it already been decided whether it gets a European or US main sensor fit (Thales Apar + Smart-L, rather than US SPY-1F/AEGIS)? Particularly since the original 6 ships of the class use Thales radars...

Sir Kirov class might be bigger and modernized, but it cannot match the aegis.
One more thing.... won't it be more feasible for PN to go 2 KDX-III as against the proposed 4 ship buy of 054a from china.... as this should cost around $1.9 b (recently rokn was quoted 2.8 for 3)....and 4 type 054 would cost $1.4b, although its around half a billion but the thing you are getting is 10x more powerful... I know its more complicated than this... but just hypothetically speaking... what do you say?

 

[Penguin]

Sir Kirov class might be bigger and modernized, but it cannot match the aegis.
One more thing.... won't it be more feasible for PN to go 2 KDX-III as against the proposed 4 ship buy of 054a from china.... as this should cost around $1.9 b (recently rokn was quoted 2.8 for 3)....and 4 type 054 would cost $1.4b, although its around half a billion but the thing you are getting is 10x more powerful... I know its more complicated than this... but just hypothetically speaking... what do you say?

You said "the most heavily armed ship ", that is what I've responded to.

PN faces block obsolescence of its main surface combattants. 2 KD3 do not solve its numerical needs. Rather than 4 054A, another option could be KD-II's fitted with the Australian Ceafar/Ceamount radars in an integrated mast (see ANZAC frigate HMAS Perth FFH 157) topped by Thales Smart S mk2, in combination with ESSM, Standard SM2 or even SM6. Best in the sense of most likely route would be additional units of modified F22P, built locally, fitted with e.g. VL Mica or CAMM(M) and Smart S Mk2.

 

[truthseeker2010]

You said "the most heavily armed ship ", that is what I've responded to.

PN faces block obsolescence of its main surface combattants. 2 KD3 do not solve its numerical needs. Rather than 4 054A, another option could be KD-II's fitted with the Australian Ceafar/Ceamount radars in an integrated mast (see ANZAC frigate HMAS Perth FFH 157) topped by Thales Smart S mk2, in combination with ESSM, Standard SM2 or even SM6. Best in the sense of most likely route would be additional units of modified F22P, built locally, fitted with e.g. VL Mica or CAMM(M) and Smart S Mk2.

Sir if PN wants quantity then it will definitely go for modified F-22's, bcoz they are cheap.... but imo they should go for less ships packed with big firepower...bcoz we don't of long coastline to cover, all we need is good air defence to counter indian CBGs as for Mica that again is pd sam... we need a better area defence sam...hq-16 or equivalent.... kdx 2's are also expensive about half a billion a piece whereas 054a should be around 300-350 million.

 

[Penguin]

Sir if PN wants quantity then it will definitely go for modified F-22's, bcoz they are cheap.... but imo they should go for less ships packed with big firepower...bcoz we don't of long coastline to cover, all we need is good air defence to counter indian CBGs as for Mica that again is pd sam... we need a better area defence sam...hq-16 or equivalent.... kdx 2's are also expensive about half a billion a piece whereas 054a should be around 300-350 million.

I didn't say KD2 is cheap, just that it is a more likely candidate than KD3.

 

[Indus Falcon]

South Korea doesn’t want SM-3 BMD missiles; Red Shark VL torpedoes fixed.

May 26/14: No SM-3s.South Korean official rule out any deployment of SM-3s for now. Defense Ministry spokesperson Kim Min-seok:

“We’ve never considered adopting the SM-3 missiles… Among issues under consideration is how to boost our maritime-based intercepting capabilities, but we’ve not yet reviewed any details…. Intercepting a missile in the ascending stage goes beyond what our military aims at. It is also beyond our capability…. The KAMD [land-based missile defense architecture] has been under development regardless of the U.S. system, and no changes have been made in our position.”

Planned SM-6 missiles will give the ROKN terminal BMD intercept capabilities around 2015-2016, and that seems to be enough. The national KAMD system currently includes Israeli Green Pine long-range radars, ex-German PATRIOT PAC-2 missiles, and an AMD-Cell command and control backbone. South Korea is about to to upgrade its PATRIOT batteries to PAC-3/Config 3, and add SM-6 missiles to KDX-III destroyers. They may also field Cheolmae 4 BMD-capable missiles in future, designed in collaboration with Russia. Sources: Yonhap, “Acquiring SM-3 missiles not an option for S. Korea: defense ministry”.

May 26/14: Weapons.South Korea has been working to resolve problems with its vertically-launched “Red Shark” (Hongsangeo) rocket-boosted torpedoes since a formal complaint was filed in July 2012. They’ve just finished their 3rd consecutive successful test, which has led DAPA to resume production.

About 500 of these ASROC-type weapons have been deployed on ROKN destroyers thus far, but FFX Batch II frigates are also expected to include them in future. Sources: Yonhap, “S. Korea to resume production of homegrown torpedo after quality improvement”.

Full article:

Korea’s KDX-III AEGIS Destroyers