Sŏwicho-class corvette
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The Sŏwicho-class corvette is a class of corvette of the Menghean Navy. They were built in the early 2000s as a replacement for the Mugunghwa-class corvettes. They specialize in coastal anti-submarine warfare, though they can also take part in general-purpose patrol missions such as sea policing and fisheries protection.
Design
Role
In the Menghean Navy's ship classification system, the Sŏwicho-class are classified as small anti-submarine patrol ships (Menghean: 소형 대잠수함 초계함 / 小型對潛水艦哨戒艦, sohyŏng dae-jamsuham chogyeham), abbreviated DChS. This distinguishes them from medium anti-submarine patrol ships (DChJ), like the Ginam-class frigates. It also separates them from the Wang Yŏn-sŏk-class corvettes, which specialize in anti-ship missile attacks and are classifid as large fast missile boats. While Western sources typically group these together as "corvettes," Menghean doctrine assigns each type a different role.
As small anti-submarine ships, the Sŏwicho-class specialize in coastal and inshore anti-submarine warfare. They are designed to operate almost exclusively in the broader littoral zone, only rarely venturing into the open ocean. For this reason, they carry no towed array sonar; at these depths, a towed array has a high probability of becoming snagged on the sea floor. Furthermore, the upper layer of warm water is relatively deep in the tropical waters of the South Menghe Sea, and the East Hemithean continental shelf extends several hundred kilometers out from the shore, creating a large shallow area where the thermocline is not present.
Ships of the Sŏwicho class have some anti-ship capability, particularly after the addition of YDH-26 missile boxes, but this armament is only intended for self-defense if they come under attack from enemy warships.
