Korea Navy R.o.K Navy (and Marine Corps)

urban mine · Jun 4, 2025

This is a YouTube channel run by a former submarine captain that provides a little insight into the development process of CIWS-II. The leader of LIG Nex1's CIWS-II development team explains the development purpose, performance, and development schedule of CIWS-II. Following the initial operational test and evaluation next year, it will be deployed on ships in 2027, followed by subsequent evaluations before being put into full-scale operation.

CIWS-II will initially use the licensed GAU-8 and later switch to a domestically produced 30mm Gatling gun.

The design of CIWS-II, which was first unveiled several years ago, is slightly different from the current CIWS-II design. The SWIR camera, which was located in the center, has been moved to the right side of the turret, reportedly due to vibration. The turret design is also different from the old one, and the size of the four-sided AESA radar panels attached to the turret has also changed slightly.

urban mine · Jun 7, 2025

Naval News interviewed a Korean correspondent about the Supercavitating Torpedo currently under development. It is much more detailed than my previous post and even includes test footage. The 1:1 scale model that was unveiled this time is really cool. I'm not sure of the exact length, but it doesn't seem to be 3 meters.

urban mine · Jun 26, 2025

LIG Nex1 completes CIWS-II mass production facility, including system assembly building

The CIWS-II system assembly building and test facilities, completed with a total investment of 21 billion won, are equipped with equipment and facilities optimized for the development and mass production of CIWS-II, including system assembly, system integration and interconnection simulation tests, and performance verification.

urban mine · Wednesday at 7:22 PM

ADD has been constructing experimental ships for testing and evaluating naval weapon systems developed in Korea. Before constructing the experimental vessel, it was necessary to requisition a ship belonging to the Navy, which caused many inconveniences due to the poor condition of the ROK Navy at the time. Drilling holes in a ship designed for combat to install test equipment not only compromises the safety of the ship but also incurs significant costs.

ADD's first experimental ship was SUN JIN, which was built in the early 1990s. It was originally part of a SWATH-type anti-submarine patrol ship project that began in the 1980s, but the Navy leadership at the time decided that the project was too ambitious and risky for the South Korean Navy to pursue, and it was canceled.

However, the features of SWATH (wide deck, shape less affected by waves than other ships of the same class, cost reduction, etc.) were advantageous for the experimental ship project that was promoted later, and it was developed based on the SWATH hull form using data from the anti-submarine patrol ship that had been promoted before. In South Korea, SWATH was not well known at the time (the Kaimalino, created by the US Navy in 1972, can be considered a monumental milestone in practical SWATH. After that, ships of this type began to be built around the world.) It can be said that this ship was as advanced as its name suggests, as it was designed independently based on collected data.

After that, it performed tasks such as performance testing of weapon systems such as torpedoes, sonar, missiles, and TASS developed by ADD, ship acoustic measurement testing, and marine environment surveys. SUN JIN was decommissioned in 2012 after completing all of its missions.

Since then, CHEONG HAE, which has a more increased displacement than the general linear, has been responsible for ADD's sea trials. It is an experimental ship with a displacement of 1,200 tons, which is nearly four times that of the SUN JIN, which has a displacement of 310 tons. The CHEONG HAE is equipped with basic functions to measure marine environmental factors such as water depth, temperature distribution, current velocity, underwater sound velocity, and weather conditions in real time, thereby correcting the environmental impact of sea trials and improving the accuracy of test result analysis. In addition, for future naval weapon system sea trials, an integrated information system has been established to enable real-time display and analysis by linking test data measured by various sensors with marine environment data and navigation and engine system data via a network. According to a video released by DAPA, it can be seen that it participated in the development and testing of the next-generation torpedo.

ADD has decided to build a 6,000-ton next-generation experimental ship in preparation for future maritime environments. It will support the Navy's scientific training in conjunction with the newly constructed Samcheok East Coast Test Range on the east coast of South Korea. In addition, it will be equipped with advanced test measurement equipment for the development and practical application of next-generation maritime guided missiles and high-altitude aircraft, and will have long-range, long-term navigation capabilities. Therefore, it will be equipped with VLS (K-VLSI, II, one module each) on the bow, and the stern deck will be equipped with heat-resistant performance for vehicle-mounted guided weapon launch tests. The ship is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026.