The Korea Coast Guard (KCG) has taken delivery of at least six of eight 500-tonne Tae Geuk-class patrol vessels it ordered from Busan-based shipbuilders Kangnam Corporation and Hanjin Heavy Industries Corporation in late 2016.
Taeguk 18 (518) is one of several new 500-tonne patrol vessels that entered service with the KCG in 2019. It is one of three hulls built by Kangnam and based in Incheon, near the North Korean border. (KCG)
The patrol boats will supplement the KCG’s existing fleet of 15 Tae Geuk vessels.
Two of three being built at Kangnam’s yard (with pennant numbers 518 and 523) were commissioned on 25 July and 5 December 2019, respectively. The delivery status of the third Kangnam-built hull, 526, remains unclear.
Hanjin Heavy Industries Corporation, meanwhile, carried out a mass launching of the remaining five hulls on 30 April 2019 at its shipyard in Yeongdo, Busan, although four of the hulls (519, 520, 521, and 522) were already outfitting in the water. Ships 519 and 522 were commissioned on 25 July and 27 December 2019, respectively; 520 was commissioned on 31 October 2019, and 521 was in service by 23 October 2019. Delivery of ship 525 is expected to take place before the end of February.
Taeguk 21 (521) is one of five new Hanjin-built hulls. Based on Jeju Island, in the southern part of South Korea, this ship is armed with a 20 mm Vulcan main gun. Similar vessels deployed near the North Korean maritime border are fitted with a 40 mm main gun. (KCG)
According to the KCG, the five hulls being built by Hanjin are one-for-one replacements for 30-year-old patrol vessels in the 250 tonne and 300 tonne categories.
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