Japan launches third Taigei-class submarine for JMSDF

KOBE, Oct 13 (The Diplomat) - Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) has launched the third Taigei-class diesel-electric attack submarine (SSK) on order for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).

The new 3,000-tonne submarine, which has been named Jingei (with pennant number SS 515), entered the water on October 12 in a ceremony held at MHI’s facilities in Kobe City.

JMSDF submarines are currently pressed to expand their roles and missions as China, North Korea, and Russia are all boosting their military muscles around Japan. In particular, Japanese subs could be drawn into a Taiwan contingency, which has become an increasingly real possibility in recent months.

According to the JMSDF, the new submarine has a crew complement of about 70, an overall length of 84 meters, a beam of 9.1 m, a draught of 10.4 m, and a standard displacement of about 3,000 tonnes. It is just slightly larger than the well-known previous Soryu-class SSKs, which have a standard displacement of 2,950 tonnes. ...continue reading

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