Japan receives, commissions first Maya-class Ballistic Missile Defense-capable AEGIS destroyer

The JS Maya (DDG-179). Photo c/o The Diplomat.

The Japan Maritime Self Defense Force  (JMSDF) has commissioned the first ship of the Maya-class guided missile destroyers, the JS Maya (DDG-179) during ceremonies held on 19 March 2020 at Japan Marine United’s (JMU) Yokohama shipyard, and attended by the Japanese Defense Minister Taro Kano.

The ship was assigned with the JMSDF’s Escort Division 1 of Escort Flotilla 1 based at Yokosuka Naval Base. JS Maya is the 7th ship in the JMSDF fleet equipped with the AEGIS combat system.

The JS Maya was laid down on April 2017, and launched in July 2018. The ship was reported to have costed at around JPY172 billion (US$1.61 billion) to build.

The Maya-class is an improvement of the JMSDF’s Atago-class guided missile destroyers, featuring the latest Aegis Baseline 9 system, compared to the Atago-class’ Aegis Baseline 7. It was also built to include Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) capability from the start, unlike other Aegis-equipped ships in the JMSDF that underwent modifications to gain such capability.

The Maya-class is also around 5 meters longer than the Atago-class at 170 meters, and has a width of 21 meters, a standard displacement of 8,200 tons, and a full-load displacement of around 10,250 tons. 

As part of the Aegis combat system, the ship is equipped with a Lockheed Martin/Raytheon AN/SPY-1D(V) phased array radar and the Northrop Grumman AN/SPQ-9B X-band high resolution fire control radar. It also has the American-developed Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC) system that allows the ship to be part of a larger system of sensors and weapons platforms to share surveillance and targeting data.

Weapons include a BAE Systems Mk.45 Mod.4 127mm naval gun, two Phalanx 20mm close-in weapon systems (CIWS), Type 17 anti-ship cruise missiles, 96 cells of Mk.41 vertical launching systems (VLS) for SM-2ER Block IIIB, SM-3 Block IIA and SM-6 air defense missiles, and Type 07 anti-submarine rockets. It will also be equipped with two Type 68 triple torpedo tubes capable of lauching the US Mk.46 and Japanese Type 73 anti-submarine torpedoes.

The JMSDF is expected to receive the second ship of the class, the Haguro (180) by March 2021.


[1] Defpost
[2] Naval News
[3] Jane’s Defence Weekly