S. Korea Begins Construction Of Second Amphibious Landing Ship

[Zarvan]

The basic layout of the Dokdo-class amphibious ship. Korea has ordered a second such ship (DAPA image)
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South Korea has begun the construction of its 14,500-ton amphibious landing ship to be used by the country's Navy.

Scheduled to be launched in April next year, a keel-laying ceremony of the second Dokdo-class ship will be today at the shipyard of Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co. in Busan, according to the state arms procurement agency Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).

This 199.4 meters long and 31 meters wide ship will be delivered to the Navy in 2020 after a trial operation, Yonhap reports. It would mark the first time for the country to build such a major transport ship for its military in a decade.

The Navy has a Dokdo-class amphibious assault ship, named LP-X Dokdo, in operation.

It's often called a "light aircraft carrier" for its capability to transport helicopters, armored vehicles, trucks, artillery, high-speed ships and other equipment as well as hundreds of troops at a time. The multi-functional vessel, one of Asia's largest amphibious landing ships, can be used for peacekeeping operations and disaster relief as well. "The first Dokdo-class ship is the valuable fruit of South Korea's resolve for self-defense and the world's top shipbuilding technology," Moon Ki-jeong, a senior DAPA official, said.

http://www.defenseworld.net/news/19...f_Second_Amphibious_Landing_Ship#.WQNq9zt95PY

 

[Hassan Guy]

I think India is buying these...

 

[Echo_419]

I think India is buying these...

Definitely not this thing

 

[Penguin]

It's often called a "light aircraft carrier" for its capability to transport helicopters, armored vehicles, trucks, artillery, high-speed ships and other equipment as well as hundreds of troops at a time.

That's just one of the stupidest statements I've read in a long time in an article.
Particularly since just below it reads:

The multi-functional vessel, one of Asia's largest amphibious landing ships, can be used for peacekeeping operations and disaster relief as well. "The first Dokdo-class ship is the valuable fruit of South Korea's resolve for self-defense and the world's top shipbuilding technology," Moon Ki-jeong, a senior DAPA official, said.

It is not an aircraft carrier, not even a 'light' one. It is a Landing Platform Helicopter (LPH)

As such Dokdo LPH acts as a command and control platform for the maritime mobile fleet and supports three-dimensional landing operations as well as maritime air operations. It can also be deployed in a range of operations including in support of national overseas policy, peacekeeping operations, disaster recovery, counter-terrorism operations and national prestige enhancement.

The ship has an overall length of 199m, a width of 31m and a draught of 7m. The standard displacement of the vessel is 14,000t and full load displacement is 18,000t. The LPH can carry over 700 marines, 10 trucks, six tanks, six AAVs, three field artillery pieces, 10 helicopters and two LCACs. Dokdo can complement more than 330 crew members.

The flight deck can accommodate five UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters at a time. The aircraft hangar facility is provided for UH-60 helicopter and the AH-1 attack helicopter. The ship could operate short-range and VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) aircraft such as the Harrier or F-35B, when equipped with a ski jump board module.