SEOUL, April 21 (Yonhap) -- A new Aegis destroyer which is to be launched this year will be named King Sejong, after the Joseon Dynasty monarch who helped create the Korean alphabet in the 15th century, South Korea's Navy said Saturday.

Currently called the KDX-III, the ship is expected to be the most powerful in the Navy, and at least two others like it will be built, the Navy said. The King Sejong, in the last stages of being fitted out as a warship at Hyundai Heavi Industries Co. in Ulsan, is to be commissioned in 2008.

"The name has been chosen because of the importance of the king in Korean history," said a spokesperson for the Navy. He said the most powerful ship in the fleet should be named after someone who strengthened the country's national defense capability and is respected by the people. Besides supporting the creation of the Korean alphabet, called "Hangeul" in Korean, Sejong pushed for the buildup of the country's defense.

Originally, the Navy had said the first ship of the Aegis destroyers would be named Ahn Yong-bok, after a civilian-diplomat who helped settle territorial disputes over Korean islands in the East Sea with Japan in the late 17th century. The last of the three Aegis ships will reach the Navy in 2012.

KDX-I light destroyer ships are called King Gwanggaeto class, while the larger KDX-II class ships are called Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin. Gwanggaeto, one of the greatest kings in Korean history, is remembered for expanding the territory of the Goguryeo Kingdom. Yi Sun-sin was a legendary admiral who helped repel Japan's invasion of Korea in the late 16th century. South Korea has three King Gwanggaeto and six Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin destroyers.

Each of the new ships costs about US$820 million and will be 165.9 meters long, with a beam of 21.4 meters and a full displacement of 13,500 tons -- about the size of the U.S. navy's Ticonderoga cruisers. The King Sejong will be armed with 16 ship-to-ship Haesung missiles and 128 ship-to-air missiles, and possibly long-range cruise missiles that could give the ship strategic capabilities. It will also have torpedoes and close-in-weapons systems to deal with sea-skimming missiles.

The Aegis combat system, built by Lockheed Martin, is a hightech, integrated weapons control system that makes use of AN/SPY-1D multi-functional phased array radar. It allows the ship to successfully combat multiple surface, underwater and aerial targets.

The Navy has traditionally named its destroyers after historic figures, while smaller-sized frigates, corvettes and mine sweepers have used names of provinces and cities. Submarines are named after naval heros, while landing ships adopt the names of islands or mountains.

yonngong@yna.co.kr

Why aren't the new ROKN Submarines called Admiral Yi class? like Jang Bogo? As it is Sejong is a kickass name for a destroyer considering the fact he is one of maybe 3 or 4 Joseon Kings who actually improved the military.

I just wish you would stop opening up new threads. Stick to one news thread.

good point. It pushes down the other threads.

Admiral Yi's name is already being used by lead ship of the KDX-II series, the 충무공 이순신급 구축함.

that will make any discussion very confusing and unorganized.


Anyways, I think King Sejong is a great name for Korea's first Aegis warship.

The ship marks a new era of technology in our navy and Sejong devised a highly efficient and indigenous written system, both for the good of the masses.

My tribute to the KDX-III. Click to enlarge;



Too bad that there's going to be only three, four if lucky, of these ships around.

I know but I bolded the ROKN naming submarines after naval heros which is why i wonder why Admiral Yi was chosen as a destroyer name

nice drawing.

Let's just say Admiral Yi Sun Shin's status has surpassed being a naval hero to being a national, historical level figure. There was a lot of complaint when 975 was named 충무공 이순신. We were hoping to reserve that name to the KDX-3, or even an aircraft carrier when the time came.

Come to think of it, I wonder how the KDX-IV will look like. Perhaps like the Zumwalt?