HomeNaval & MaritimeJapan commissions 10th Sōryū-Class Attack Submarine

Japan commissions 10th Sōryū-Class Attack Submarine

The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) commissioned its 10th Sōryū-class diesel-electric attack submarine (SSK) on 18 March.

The submarine JS Shoryu (SS-510) was built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) and its shipbuilding subsidiary Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation (KSC). The boat was commissioned during a ceremony held at the KSC shipyard in Hyōgo Prefecture, central Japan.

Shoryu is the eleventh Sōryū-class to be completed (tenth to be commissioned) and the fifth to be built by KHI, with the other six submarines constructed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI). A total of fifteen are currently planned.

Powered by two Kawasaki 12V 25/25 diesel engines and four Kawasaki Kockums V4-275R Stirling engines, the 84-metre, 2,947-tonne submarine carries 65 sailors and has a maximum speed of 20 knots. The submarine has six 533 mm torpedo tubes that can launch the Japanese Type 89 heavyweight torpedo and the US UGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile.

The class of submarine Sōryū means blue dragon in Japanese while Shoryu is named after a Second World War Japanese aircraft carrier sunk during the Battle of Midway in 1942.

Sōryū-class submarine

Type: Diesel-electric Attack Submarine

Builders: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation

Country of Origin: Japan

Operator: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF)

Built: 2005-present | In Commission: 2009-present

Planned: 15 | Completed: 11 | Building: 3

Crew: 65

Displacement: 2,900 tonnes (surfaced), 4,200 tonnes (submerged) | Length: 84m | Beam: 9.1m | Draught: 8.5 m

Armament: 6 x 533 mm torpedo tubes for Type 89 heavyweight torpedos and UGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles

On-board Systems: ZPS-6F surface/low-level air search radar; Hughes/Oki ZQQ-7 Sonar suite; 1 × bow-array, 4 × LF flank arrays and 1 × towed array sonar; ZLR-3 6 ESM equipment; 2 × 3-inch underwater countermeasure launcher tubes for launching of Acoustic Device Countermeasures (ADCs)

Propulsion: 2 Kawasaki 12V 25/25 diesel engines and 4 Kawasaki Kockums V4-275R Stirling engines

Speed: 13 kn (surfaced), 20 kt (submerged)

Range: c.6000 nautical miles at 6.5 kn

Diving Depth: c.500 m

Neil Ritchie
Neil Ritchie
Neil Ritchie is the founder and editor of DefenceToday.com. Neil is also the editor of other online publications covering military history, defence and security. He can be found on Twitter: @NeilRitchie86.

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