[Military Story] From Small Submersible Importer to Submarine Export Powerhouse

Introduction of Dolphin-class Submarines in 1984
Emergence as a Submarine Exporter to Canada, Poland, and Others

The military first operated a small submarine in 1984. The military approved the development project for a 200-ton class small submarine in November 1976. Named "Dolgorae," this submarine was launched on April 5, 1983. The Dolgorae-class submarine is a small submarine with a length of 25m and a width of 2.1m, with a crew of 14 (6 crew members and 8 infiltration agents). It has been operated for coastal missions. Since the commissioning of the 051 ship in 1984, the Dolgorae-class small submarines saw the commissioning of the 052 and 053 ships in 1990 and 1991, respectively. After silently carrying out the mission of protecting the homeland's territorial waters for over 20 years, it honorably retired on December 31, 2003.

In 2010, the Joint Chiefs of Staff requested the next-generation small submarine (Beomgorae-class) to replace the Dolgorae-class. The Intelligence Command plans to operate three units. The Beomgorae-class submarine has a travel range of 180 km, can dive up to 250m deep, and can infiltrate the North Korean West Sea coastal area when departing from the Northwest Islands. To increase mission success rates, numerous advanced technologies such as lithium polymer batteries, electric motors, and precise underwater navigation devices were introduced. In particular, seawater does not enter the submarine, preventing hypothermia among infiltration agents. Once developed, the small submarine can also be installed on the Navy's next-generation 3,000-ton class "Jangbogo-III Batch-2" submarines.

The 3,000-ton submarine 'Dosan Ahn Changho' (Jangbogo-III Phase 1, No. 1), the first of its kind launched by our Navy in 2019. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Dolgorae-class became a major driving force in the development of Korean underwater weapon systems. The organizational structure was also revitalized. The 57th Submarine Flotilla, the predecessor of our Navy's Submarine Command, was established in 1990. The 57th Submarine Flotilla was upgraded to the 9th Submarine Flotilla in October 1995 and further elevated to the Submarine Command in February 2015. The submarines operated for 30 years achieved a safe navigation record of 2.8 million miles (4.506 million km). The 2.8 million miles correspond to the distance traveled by Navy submarines and submersibles since the first introduction of the submarine in 1984, equivalent to circling the Earth 129 times.

The latest vessel is the Navy's Jangbogo-III-class (3,000-ton class) submarine developed with domestic independent technology. "Batch" refers to a group of ships built of the same type, and the first ship of the Jangbogo-III Batch-I is the Dosan Ahn Changho, commissioned in August 2021. The second ship is the Anmu. The Anmu is equipped with numerous domestically developed equipment such as the combat system, which acts as the brain of the submarine, and sonar (sound detection device), achieving a localization rate of 76%, double that of the Jangbogo-I and II classes. It is a diesel submarine equipped with an AIP (Air Independent Propulsion) system that extends submerged operation time. With the AIP system, unlike older submarines, it can conduct underwater operations for up to several weeks without surfacing, further enhancing the stealth, which is vital to a submarine's survival.

The maximum underwater speed exceeds 20 knots (37 km/h), with a crew of about 50. Like the Dosan Ahn Changho, it is known to have six vertical launch tubes capable of firing submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM). Vertical launch tubes are mostly installed on nuclear-powered submarines, and it is rare worldwide for diesel submarines to have them. This is also the most distinguishing feature of the 3,000-ton class submarines compared to the existing 1,200-ton and 1,800-ton class submarines. South Korea, a country possessing the latest submarines, has been offering the "International Submarine Course" training program since 2013, providing commissioned education to foreign military officers and non-commissioned officers. As of last year, 93 personnel from 10 countries including the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Turkey have been trained.

Submarine exports have become a pillar of "K-Defense." Hanwha Ocean is partnering with the UK’s Babcock and expects exports to Poland and Canada. They plan to concretize the installation of weapon launch systems supplied by Babcock on the expected export Jangbogo-III submarines and the ISS (Integrated Support Services) business cooperation for the submarine lifecycle follow-up logistics support. Poland plans to purchase 2 to 3 units of 3,000-ton class submarines, and Canada plans to acquire 12 units of 3,000-ton class submarines.