South Korean Navy Receives Aegis Destroyer Jeongjo The Great Next Week: Equipped With Advanced Missile Interceptors

The launch of the AEGIS destroyer ROKS Jeongjo The Great. (Source: HHI)

JAKARTA - The Navy will receive a new destroyer weighing 8,200 tons armed with a state-of-the-art missile interceptor platform next week, officials said on Wednesday, a move that is expected to help improve military air defense capabilities against North Korea's missiles.

The Navy will receive the destroyer Jeongjo The Great, the name of the king of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), in a ceremony to be held in Ulsan, about 310 kilometers southeast of Seoul, next Wednesday, according to Navy officials. November 20.

Previously, the warship launch ceremony was carried out in July 2022.

The 170-meter-long and 21-meter-wide destroyer is equipped with the latest Aegis radar avoidance and combat system capable of detecting and tracking ballistic missiles, but also intercepting them.

The warship will be equipped with a surface-to-air missile system based on the Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) ship capable of intercepting ballistic missiles coming at altitudes above 100 kilometers.

Earlier, the state arms procurement agency said in April its arms program review committee approved plans to acquire SM-3 through foreign military sales between governments.

The destroyer Jeongjo the Great is the first of three Aegis destroyers weighing 8,200 tons planned for the South Korean Navy under the Gwanggaeto-III Batch-II project.

This ship is South Korea's fourth Aegis destroyer after ROKS King Sejong the Great, ROKS Yulgok Yi I and ROKS Seoae Ryu Seong-ryong.