S. Korea to launch new frigate with enhanced anti-sub capabilities

South Korea is set to hold a ceremony launching a new 2,800-ton frigate with enhanced anti-submarine capabilities Tuesday, the state arms procurement agency said.

The ceremony for the Chuncheon will take place at the shipyard of Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. in Ulsan, some 410 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).

Some 50 people, including Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Kim Jung-soo and Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. President Lee Sang-kyun, are set to join the event.

"Armed with high-tech homegrown weapons, the frigate Chuncheon is expected to play a big role for the country's maritime defense," Bang Guck-cheol, chief of the DAPA's Naval Ships Program Department, said.

The 122-meter-long frigate is equipped with a 20-mm Phalanx close-in weapons system and underwater missiles, as well as hull mounted and towed array sonar systems, officials said.

The latest vessel is the eighth and last warship built as part of Seoul's frigate acquisition program, code-named FFX Batch-II. The program is designed to replace the country's aging fleet of 1,500-ton frigates and 1,000-ton corvettes. (Yonhap)