◦ The Navy unveiled training for the Chomu Ship (SS-Ⅲ), a 3,000-ton strategic submarine equipped with an SLBM.
◦ On June 11, the Chomu ship conducted attack training on enemy submarines and surface ships in the waters near Busan, searching for and destroying virtual enemy submarines and surface ships, and training on striking key targets on the enemy’s ground.
◦ This training will help our military master the procedures for searching and attacking enemy submarines and surface ships in situations of continuous provocations such as North Korea’s dispersal of waste balloons, GPS jamming, and ballistic missile launches, and striking at the heart of the enemy and overwhelmingly punishing and destroying it. This was carried out to solidify the preparedness posture.
◦ The training began under the assumption that a North Korean SLBM-equipped submarine had left the base and was in the process of being identified. The Chomu ship moved to the expected maneuvering route of the enemy submarine and began detecting the enemy submarine using the sonar system. Next, the sonar of the Chomu ship detected and analyzed an unknown underwater noise, which was confirmed to be the propeller noise of an enemy submarine.
◦ Chomumu confirmed that an enemy submarine had entered the south of the NLL and launched an emergency torpedo attack. When the sonar tube pressed the torpedo launch button, the torpedo launch tube opened and the seawater that flowed into the launch tube pushed the torpedo out. The torpedo fired from the Chomu ship accurately hit the enemy submarine, sinking it with a single hit.
◦ When the enemy submarine was sunk, an enemy surface ship maneuvering nearby approached at high speed. The ship quickly changed her position to deeper depth to avoid detection by enemy surface ships. After contacting the enemy surface ship with a sonar, Chomu used a periscope and an electro-optical system to identify the target of her surface in detail, then fired a torpedo and sank the enemy surface ship.
◦ Strike training against enemy ground continued. The Chomu ship, which blocked attacks on enemy submarines and surface ships, maneuvered secretly and accurately struck key targets on the enemy’s ground using the mounted SLBM.
◦ Captain Ahn Geon-yeong (Colonel), who led the training, said, “All crew members are at the highest level of combat readiness,” and added, “If the enemy provokes us, we will immediately, strongly, and completely punish the enemy in the water to destroy the enemy.”
◦ The Chomu ship is a reliable ‘strategic sword’ that has war deterrence and retaliation capabilities and can instill fear in the enemy with its mere presence, and is the core force of the maritime-based Korean three-axis system. The Chomu ship performs tracking and attack missions against North Korean submarines, and is equipped with SLBMs, allowing it to strike key North Korean targets based on stealth and mobility even when land bases or military airports are restricted due to enemy attacks.
◦ The choreographed ship is a 3,000-ton ship, her maximum underwater speed is over 20kts (37km/h), and her crew can accommodate about 50 people. The size of the ship is about twice that of the Son Won-il class submarine, and her submergence period has also increased. She was also equipped with a number of domestically developed equipment, including combat systems and sonar systems, improving her localization rate.
◦ There are four female crew members working on the choreography ship. The Navy selected nine female soldiers in June 2023 after deciding to allow female soldiers to board submarines at a policy meeting in July 2022. The two selected officers and seven non-commissioned officers completed the submarine basic course training on January 5th and are currently performing their duties on the Dosan Ahn Chang-ho (5 people) and Chomu (4 people).