The Republic of Korea Navy, also known as the ROK Navy or South Korean Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and amphibious operations. The ROK Navy includes the Republic of Korea Marine Corps, which functions as a branch of the Navy. The ROK Navy has about 70,000 regular personnel including 29,000 Republic of Korea Marines. There are about 140 commissioned ships in the ROK Navy. The naval aviation force consists of about 70 fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. The ROK Marine Corps has about 300 tracked vehicles including assault amphibious vehicles.
Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin class destroyers are multipurpose destroyers of the Republic of Korea Navy. The lead ship of this class, ROKS Chungmugong Yi Sunsin, was launched in May 2002 and commissioned in December 2003. Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin-class destroyers were the second class of ships to be produced in the Republic of Korea Navy's destroyer mass-production program named Korean Destroyer eXperimental, which paved the way for the navy to become a blue-water navy. Six ships were launched by Hyundai Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering in four years.
The Sejong the Great-class destroyers, also known as KDX-III, are three guided-missile destroyers of the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN).
The Gwanggaeto the Great-class destroyers, often called KDX-I, are destroyers, but are classified by some as frigates, operated by the Republic of Korea Navy. It was the first phase of ROKN's KDX program, in moving the ROK Navy from a coastal defence force to a blue-water navy.
The Korean Attack Submarine program, KSS meaning Submarine, is a three-phased project to build up the Republic of Korea Navy 's attack submarine arsenal. Before the KSS program, the submarine fleet of the ROK Navy consisted of midget submarines, such as the Dolgorae class submarine and SX 756 Dolphin class submarine, which had limited capabilities for inshore operations. The KSS program sought to acquire submarines that can deter hostile submarines and surface ships; protect friendly naval bases and sea shores communications; carry out reconnaissance missions.
The Hyunmoo-3 is a cruise missile fielded by the South Korean military designed by Agency for Defense Development (ADD). The name Hyunmoo comes from a mythical beast described as the "Guardian of the Northern Sky", perhaps hinting North Korea.
The Republic of Korea Navy was founded on November 11, 1945 as Marine Defense Group after Korea was liberated from the Empire of Japan. The ROK Navy is the oldest service within the ROK Armed Forces. In 2015, the South Korean navy celebrated its 70th anniversary.
LIG Nex1 Co., Ltd., formerly known as NEX1 Future, and LG Innotek is a South Korean aerospace manufacturer and defense company. It was established in 1976 as Goldstar Precision. LIG Nex1 was previously owned by LIG Holdings Company, which in turn was owned by the LIG Group. In 2013, a consortium led by South Korea private equity firm STIC Investments acquired 49 percent stake in LIG Nex1 for 420 billion Korean won.
The Incheon-class frigates, also known as the Future Frigate eXperimental or FFX during development, are coastal defense frigates of the Republic of Korea Navy. The lead ship was launched on 29 April 2011. The Incheon-class frigates will replace the aging fleet of Pohang-class corvettes and Ulsan-class frigates, and take over multi-role operations such as coast patrol, anti-submarine warfare and transport support. Later batches are planned to be specialized on anti-air and anti-submarine warfare. An improved version is being introduced as the Daegu-class frigate; this was previously known as Batch II of the Incheon class.
The Jang Bogo-class submarine or KSS-I is a variant of the Type 209 diesel-electric attack submarine initially developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) of Germany, intended for service with the South Korean Navy and Indonesian Navy. A Daewoo (DSME)-upgraded model of the Jang Bogo class Type 209 was exported by Korea to Indonesia in 2012, amid heavy competition from Russian, French, and German-Turkish consortiums including from Germany's original Type 209. The variant was considered for possible purchase by Thailand as well, as both newly built and second-hand options. The class is named for ancient Korean maritime figure Jang Bogo.
The Daegu-class frigate is a class of guided missile frigates of the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN). The Daegu class is based on the preceding Incheon class, and has otherwise been referred to as the Incheon class batch II, or FFG-II. Eight Daegu-class ships have been commissioned, with the final goal of 20–22 frigates, of all types, in the ROKN. The Daegu-class frigates were built by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) and Hyundai Heavy Industries.
The Korean Next-Generation Destroyer (KDDX) is a next generation stealth guided-missile destroyer under development by Hyundai Heavy Industries for ROK Navy, to be launched after 2025. Displacement of the class is set to be about 8,000 tons, length 155 meters, breadth 18.8 meters and draft 9.5 meters. Will feature KVLS to launch Hyunmoo-3C land-attack cruise missiles and SSM-700K anti-ship missiles. At 8000 tons displacement, it will be lighter than Sejong the Great-class destroyers, but with more advanced sensors and stealth characteristics and lower operating costs. The ships will have advanced missile defense. The size of this new destroyer would be between that of the currently operating 4,200-ton KDX-II and the Aegis Destroyer KDX-III, and would be assigned to a naval task force. The total cost of developing and producing the six vessels is expected to top $6.2 billion.
The KSS-III, often called Dosan Ahn Changho class is a series of diesel-electric attack submarines currently being built for the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN), jointly by Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI). The KSS-III is the final phase of the Korean Attack Submarine program, a three-phased program to build 27 attack submarines for the ROKN, between 1994–2029.
ROKS Sejong the Great (DDG-991) is the lead ship of her class of guided missile destroyer built for the Republic of Korea Navy. She was the first Aegis-built destroyer of the service and was named after the fourth king of the Joseon dynasty of Korea, Sejong the Great.
ROKS Yulgok Yi I (DDG-992) is the second ship of the Sejong the Great-class destroyers that was built for the Republic of Korea Navy. She was designed around the Aegis Combat System and was named after philosopher and scholar of the Joseon Dynasty, Yulgok Yi I.
ROKS Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong is the third ship of the Sejong the Great-class destroyers built for the Republic of Korean Navy. She was the third Aegis-built ship of the service and was named after a scholar-official of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea, Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong.
ROKS Wang Geon (DDH-978) is a Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin-class destroyer in the Republic of Korea Navy. She is named after Wang Geon.
ROKS Dosan Ahn Changho (SS-083) is the lead ship of Dosan Ahn Changho-class submarines. She is expected to be commissioned in 2020.
The defense industry of South Korea is the main supplier of armaments to the Republic of Korea's Armed Forces. Originally heavily reliant on the United States to supply weapons to its armed forces, South Korea began manufacturing its own weapons through the country's industrialization and military modernization efforts. Today, South Korea enjoys a robust defense industry and is the world's 8th largest weapons exporter.
South Korea
