Kim Shimin-Class Destroyer

Kim Shimin-class destroyer

The Batch I variants of the Kim Shimin-class, 36 of which have been planned for service.
Class overview
Operators:	Zhenia
Preceded by:	Changan-class destroyer Zhuhae-class destroyer
Subclasses:	Han Jisung-Class destroyer
Built:	2002-Present
In commission:	2005-Present
Planned:	72
On order:	2
Building:	2
Completed:	32
Active:	32
General characteristics Kim Shimin-class
Type:	Guided missile destroyer
Displacement:	12,080 metric tons max
Length:	163.4 m (at waterline, full load) 180.2 m (max)
Beam:	21.8 m
Draught:	5.38 m (from waterline to hull) 7.47 m (including sonar bulge)
Propulsion:	COGLAG (All-electric propulsion at Batch II) 2 x Hanshin Motors GTM-4500 turbines, providing 35 MW of thrust each
Speed:	30+ knots
Range:	13,600 km at 18 knots
Complement:	260
Sensors and processing systems:	4-sided AESA radar system, within Li-Jien Dynamics Phased Array Integrated Mast (PAIM)
Electronic warfare & decoys:	Integrated Electronic Warfare System (IEWS)
Armament:	Guns 1 x 127 mm/L56 naval gun 2 x 30 mm dual Gatling gun (on SkyGuard CIWS) 4 x 12.7 mm RWS Missile capacity 64 x forward VLS cells 64 x aft VLS cells 16 x central VLS cells (for anti-ship missiles)
Aircraft carried:	2 x MH-60R medium lift helicopters and 1 x MQ-8B unmanned helicopter
Aviation facilities:	Helicopter deck and hangar

The Kim Shimin-class destroyer (Zhenian: 김시민급 구축함) is a line of Zhenian-built, conventionally-powered guided missile destroyers primarily in service with the Republic of Zhenia Navy. Intended to replace the significantly aging Changan-class destroyers that had been in service since the late 1960s, the Kim Shimin-class has assumed significant roles in fleet defense and as flagships of smaller flotillas. The name of the class comes from Kim Shimin, the eighth Chancellor of Zhenia. It is expected to be complemented by the smaller Hansan-class frigates within fleets.

Development

While the Changan-class destroyers provided fleet air defense coverage and occasionally performed flagship roles for the Zhenian Navy from the late 1960s and onward, the platform itself was clearly showing its limits. A line of interim destroyers, at the form of the Zhuhae-class, was built in the early 1990s in vain, although the process of constructing the Zhuhae-class provided crucial technical lessons on the construction of a new line of guided missile destroyers. An improved variant of the Zhuhae-class, addressing issues on propulsion and capacity to expand to counter future threats, were proposed to be the layout of such new destroyers, but were rejected in favor of a near-complete redesign that later became the Kim Shimin-class.

Among the many differences it had with its predecessors, the Kim Shimin-class' most visible difference includes the introduction of integrated masts built through radar-absorbing composite materials, a significant leap from the 'cluttered' superstructures of its predecessors. While a design containing phased array radar antennas, like the Zhuhae-class, were also considered, they were rejected in favor of the reinforcement and enlargement of the integrated mast. Vertical launch arrays, carrying assorted missiles in a grid arrangement, were also used more widely in the Kim Shimin-class, with dedicated anti-ship missile launchers vanishing starting from the Batch I vessels. Many of the design characteristics that emerged with the Kim Shimin-class were incorporated into the construction of the Hansan-class frigates.

The Kim Shimin-class did become a legitimate successor to some of the philosophies kept in mind during the construction of its predecessors. The Zhuhae-class, initially meant as a multirole replacement for the Kim Shimin-class, had focused on all aspects of warfare possible for a ship of its class, including anti-air, anti-submarine and surface-to-surface warfare. Such philosophy was further consolidated in the Kim Shimin-class, capable of undertaking numerous missions given to the ship at the time, even capable of serving as a flagship occasionally on smaller formations. The multirole capacity of the Kim Shimin-class became the standard for many Zhenian surface ships built afterwards.

Batches

Batch II

The Kim Shimin-class Batch II, also known as the Han Jisung-class for the first ship of the new batch, is set to be a major upgrade in the existing destroyer platform, with significant improvements across various components. Although sporting a similar propulsion system with the previous batch, the Batch II ships are set to be powered by all-electric propulsion, enough to provide power capacity for future upgrades in its sensor suite and armaments, hinting for the introduction of railguns and laser weaponry.

See Also

• Changan-class destroyer, its predecessor
• Hansan-class frigate