A Knox-class frigate, also known as the Chi Yang-class (濟陽級) in Taiwan, which was purchased from the US and has been in use by the navy for nearly three decades, is to be decommissioned soon, a military source said on Saturday.
The Lan Yang (蘭陽艦), a Chi Yang-class frigate belonging to the Republic of China Navy that began service in Taiwan in 1995, is to be decommissioned around the middle of this month in a ceremony in Kaohsiung, the unnamed source said.
The decommissioned frigate would then be stripped of its weapon and radar systems before being used by the navy for target practice, the source said.
Photo: Taipei Times
The Lan Yang is the third Chi Yang-class frigate to be decommissioned after being used by the navy for about 30 years. It was formerly in service in the US as the USS Joseph Hewes.
In the 1990s, the US agreed to transfer eight Knox-class frigates to Taiwan. They were later reclassified as Chi Yang-class frigates before beginning their service in the navy between 1993 and 1999.
The navy previously retired two Chi Yang-class frigates, the Chi Yang and Hai Yang, in May 2015, because the navy had acquired two new frigates from the US, and it is too costly to keep the aging Knox-class frigates operational.
No plans have been announced for decommissioning the remaining five Chi Yang-class frigates in service.
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