WDS 2024 – South Korean Hanwha proposes its KSS-III Batch-II submarine to Saudi Arabia
At the World Defense Show Hanwha Ocean, one of the key players in the South Korean naval scenario, exhibited the model of its KSS-III Batch-II diesel electric submarine, which is being proposed to a number of countries, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
With two submarines well under construction, their construction having started respectively in May and December 2021, and a third which construction has just started, the Republic of Korea Navy will add the three Batch-II boats to the same number of Batch-I, the last still to be commissioned. The last Batch-II boat is being built at Hanwha Ocean, the company leveraging its experience in this field to promote its submarines on the export market.
Hanwha Ocean is currently proposing its KSS-III Batch-II, known in South Korean Navy as Jang Bogo-Ⅲ Batch-II, not only to Saudi Arabia but also to Canada and Poland. The boat has a submerged displacement of 4,000 tonnes (3,600 tonnes emerged), is about 89 metres long, with a 9.7 metres beam.
The boat is powered by a diesel-electric system based on three Rolls-Royce MTU 4000 diesel generators an electric motor driving a seve-blade screw, with lithium-ion batteries in the bottom, aft and in front of the sail. An air independent propulsion (AIP) system based on four fuel cells is located in the centre of the boat, and ensures long range submerged autonomy. The KSS-III Batch-II can reach a maximum speed of 20 knots when submerged, and has a range, surfaced, of 10,000 nautical miles.
The boat has berthing for 50 personnel, however the crew is reduced to less than 40 people, usually 35, thanks to a very high degree of automation on board which, as Hanwha Ocean representatives told EDR On-Line, not only allows reducing personnel but also contributes reducing human errors, the safety system being i.e. fully automated. Remaining space can be used for example to transport and deploy Special Forces operators.
The boat is fitted with six 533 mm torpedo tubes and weapon handling and launch systems provided by Babcock of the UK. Equipped with a highly efficient air turbine pump, they allow not only to launch heavy torpedoes, such as the Tiger Shark produced by LIG Nex1 and now in service on Batch-I boats, but also missiles and mines, including the submarine launched mobile mine (SLMM). The submarine has storage space for 14 weapons of different types and is fitted with a fully automated reloading system. However, the primary weapon of KSS-III Batch-II boats will be the 10 medium-range ballistic missiles, their vertical launch system being located aft of the sail. The latter carries eight holstable masts, each for different purposes ranging from periscopes to antennas.
Photos by P. Valpolini
