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China’s military
ChinaMilitary

South Korea upgrades world’s most heavily armed destroyer

  • The first in the new line of KDX III ships launches, with delivery expected by November 2024
  • Jeongjo the Great, named after an 18th century king, will be able to fire surface-to-air missiles with twice the range of those on previous ships of the same class

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South Korea’s latest destroyer, Jeongjo the Great, is moored during a launch ceremony in Ulsan, South Korea on July 28. Photo: EPA-EFE
Liu Zhen

South Korea launched the first of an upgraded version of the world’s most heavily armed destroyer, pushing ahead in East Asia’s naval arms race.

South Korea is expected to have six powerful 10,000-plus-tonne destroyers operating by the end of this decade, while China is expected to have at least eight.

The first of the KDX III Batch II destroyers, Jeongjo the Great, was launched on July 28 and is expected to be delivered by November 2024. Construction of the ship began in 2021.

The KDX III class is a 10,500-tonne (10,334-ton) guided-missile destroyer featuring the US Aegis combat system. When the first KDX III ship, Sejong the Great, entered service in 2008 it was considered Asia’s largest and most powerful destroyer. The destroyer, named after a 15th century Korean king, has up to 128 vertical launching system (VLS) cells – more than any other warship in the world.

The Batch II destroyer has an improved Aegis naval weapons system and will be loaded with new types of helicopters. Its armaments, including its close-in weapon system, have also been upgraded.

To accommodate the changes, Jeongjo the Great, named after an 18th century king, is slightly larger than previous KDX III destroyers. It has 88 VLS cells, some of which have been modified for more advanced missiles.

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China builds full-scale mock-ups of US warships in area used for missile target practice

China builds full-scale mock-ups of US warships in area used for missile target practice

The Batch II ships will be able to fire surface-to-air SM-6 missiles with a range of 370km (230 miles) – twice the range of the missiles on Batch I destroyers. The upgraded Aegis system also enables the use of SM-3 or L-SAM interceptor missiles.

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