Despite hitting a snag in a recent bidding process, the navy is proceeding with the development of a stealth 500-tonne fast attack missile boat that is already being hailed as Taiwan’s “carrier killer.”
Plans for the indigenous development of the 500-tonne corvette were first made public in 2009. In April the following year, Deputy Minister of National Defense Lin Yu-pao (林於豹) told the legislature that design work as part of the Hsun Hai (迅海, “Swift Sea”) program was completed and that bidding would be held this year.
The legislature last year passed a NT$24.98 billion (US$853.4 million) budget to build between seven and 11 corvettes, with delivery scheduled for 2014. The boats are reportedly expected to remain in service for 25 years.
Image provided courtesy of the Republic of China Navy
However, the process hit an obstacle last month, when only two small firms, Ching Fu Shipbuilding Co and Lung Teh Shipbuilding Co, participated in the bid for construction of the Swift Sea prototypes. China Shipbuilding Corp, Taiwan (CSBC), the nation’s largest shipbuilder, did not participate in the March 26 bid, causing it to fail, the Chinese-language Asia-Pacific Defense Magazine reported in its latest issue.
A CSBC official said the firm decided not to participate in the bid because several technological requirements for the project had yet to be confirmed by the ministry.
Once those issues have been cleared up, CSBC will participate in the bid, the official said, adding that the company was very keen on winning the contract.
The corvettes will come equipped with eight Hsiung Feng II (HF-2) and Hsiung Feng III (HF-3) anti-ship missiles, as well as a 76mm rapid-fire bow gun. The catamaran-style design, reports said, may have been inspired by the 220-tonne Houbei-class Type 022 catamaran recently deployed by China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).
Analysts are saying the central cross-linked structure of the Swift Sea corvette will provide high stability, adding that its 30 knot (55.5kph) speed will also be an asset. Special attention has reportedly been paid to the stealth design for the hull and main gun turret, which will use radar refractive materials
The program is seen as the logical follow-up to the development of the Kuang Hua VI (KH-6) fast-attack boats in service in the navy since 2010. In all, 31 of the CSBC-made, 170-tonne KH-6s, divided into three squadrons and which carry four HF-2s each, are active in the navy. Earlier this year, critics of the small attack craft said its light displacement and top-heavy design undermined its stability at sea, especially during unfavorable weather conditions.
James Holmes of the US Naval War College told the Taipei Times at the time that the KH-6 was probably only a transitional platform until something better was introduced.
Amid growing focus on the indigenous development of weapons systems, Taiwan appears to be slowly emphasizing an asymmetrical approach to countering the Chinese military, with less reliance on heavy — and expensive — platforms and more on speed, stealth and evasiveness, analysts say.
Taiwanese defense analysts say the principal role of the new corvettes in coastal defense will be to target any carrier battle group deployed by the PLAN in nearby waters.
China’s first aircraft carrier, the refurbished former Soviet Varyag, is expected to enter service in August this year. Two or three additional carriers are expected to be built by Chinese shipyards by 2020.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard