Taiwan reaches keel laying milestone for first indigenous attack submarine program

 

A scale model of the Indigenous Defense Submarine for the Republic of China Navy. Photo c/o CNA News.

The construction of Taiwan's first indigenously-built diesel-electric attack submarine has reached a milestone as the keel has been laid recently.

The submarine is being constructed under Taiwan's Indigenous Defense Submarine (IDS) programme, which aims to build a new fleet of eight diesel-electric attack submarines with technical assistance from friendly countries.

Taiwan International Shipbuilding Corporation (CSBC) is building the submarines in their yard in Kaohsiung, with reports saying the ship has been given a factory number "1168", although no pictures are available due to secrecy by the Taiwanese Government.

Naval News reported that the new submarines will be armed with the Mark 48 Mod 6 Advanced Technology heavyweight torpedoes and UGM-84L Harpoon Block II submarine-launched anti-ship missile from the US.

The submarines will also be equipped with high efficiency batteries developed locally, instead of Air Independent Propulsion (AIP system.

The Taiwanese Government has allocated a total budget of NT$49.36 billion (US$1.78 billion) from 2019 to 2025 to fund the design and construction of these new submarines, as it aims to modernize its ageing underwater fleet.

Currently the Republic of China Navy (ROCN) operates two Chien Lung-class submarines built in the 1980s by the Netherlands, and two World War 2-era Hai Shih-class submarines, which are former US Navy Tench-class submarines transferred to Taiwan in 1973.

This pales in comparison to regional submarine forces, especially those from China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), with China considered as Taiwan's biggest security threat.




[1] Taiwan News
[2] Naval News