South Korea To Build First Aircraft Carrier: Weighing 30,000 Tons, Capable Of Carrying 16 Fighter Jets

Computer graphic image of North Korea's CVX aircraft carrier. (Source: North Korean Navy)

JAKARTA - Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) are competing to win a contract worth 2 trillion won, or US$1.7 billion, to build South Korea's first aircraft carrier, or CVX.

an order worth 2 trillion won ($1.7 billion) to build Korea's first aircraft carrier, known as the CVX.

The sheer magnitude of the first carrier project for the two shipbuilders could lead to additional deals for such large ships both domestically and abroad.

According to sources, South Korea's Ministry of Defense is expected to start accepting bids for the initial CVX design as early as next year, the project is worth 3 trillion won with construction accounting for more than 2 trillion won, citing the Korea Times October 22.

The ship will weigh 30,000 tons with a length of 260m and a width of 40m. That size would make the carrier capable of carrying 12 F-35Bs and eight attack helicopters. The ship can carry up to 16 fighter jets by reducing the number of helicopters.

If the National Assembly passes the budget for the CVX by the end of this year, the initial design will take about two to three years to complete, while construction will take five to seven years.

In October 2019, HHI was commissioned to provide a conceptual design for the ship, which was completed in December last year. The official start of the initial bidding will mark the launch of the CVX project.

Only HHI and DSME are allowed to participate in CVX's bidding and both companies are busy expanding cooperation with local and foreign companies to win the order. HHI recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), which is the only domestic company capable of building fighter jets as well as military helicopters.

In August, HHI also signed a partnership with one of the UK's leading shipbuilders, Babcock International, which is taking part in the development of the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier and has cutting-edge technology in its construction.

Meanwhile in June, DSME joined hands with the Italian state-run Fincantieri, which has previous experience developing next-generation destroyers and aircraft carriers. In August, DSME also signed an MOU with Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction, which has built more than 1,000 ships over the past 50 years.