Kongō-class destroyer

Myōkō (DDG-175) in 2012
Class overview
Builders: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
IHI Corporation
Operators: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
Preceded by: Hatakaze class
Succeeded by: Atago class
Built: 1990 - 1998
Completed: 4
Active: 4
General characteristics
Type:Kongō class guided missile destroyer
Displacement:7,500 tons standard
9,500 tons full load
Length:528.2 ft (161 m)
Beam:68.9 ft (21 m)
Draft:20.3 ft (6.2 m)
Propulsion:4 Ishikawajima Harima/General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines;
two shafts,
100,000 shaft horsepower (75 MW)
Speed:30 knots (56 km/h)
Range:4,500 nautical miles at 20 knots
(8,334 km at 37 km/h)
Complement:300
Armament:• RGM-84 Harpoon SSM
• SM-2MR Standard SAM (29 cells at the bow, 61 cell at the aft)
• SM-3 Block IA ABM
• RUM-139 Vertical Launch ASROC
• 1 x 5 inch (127 mm) / 54 caliber Oto-Breda Compact Gun
• 2 x 20 mm Phalanx CIWS
• 2 x Type 68 triple torpedo tubes (6 x Mk-46 or Type 73 torpedoes)
Aircraft carried:Room for a helicopter to land on the rear deck, but no support equipment installed

The Kongō class (こんごう型護衛艦 Kongō-gata Goeikan) of guided missile destroyers serves as the core ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF)'s Escort Flotillas

Design

The Kongō class employs the highly advanced Aegis fire control system and is armed with the RIM-66 SM-2MR Block II surface-to-air missile, RUM-139 vertically launched anti-submarine rocket, the RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missile, two Mark 15 20 mm CIWS gun mounts, two torpedo mounts in a triple tube configuration, and an Oto Melara 127 mm/54 caliber gun. Its Mark 41 vertical launch system can hold 90 missiles. However, in keeping with the defensive mission of the JMSDF and passive role of the Japan Self-Defense Forces in general, the Kongō-class lacks the Tomahawk missile.

As on other ships employing the Aegis system, the superstructure is dominated by the SPY-1's phased arrays, which eliminates the need for a traditional rotating antenna. The design of the superstructure also incorporates certain stealth features, designed to reduce radar cross section of the ship; however, as a consequence, the ship is considerably more top-heavy than a typical destroyer and requires a much deeper draft. As such, operations in a littoral (coastal) environment are limited. Overall, Kongō-class destroyers are much larger than traditional destroyers and at 9,485 tons displacement come close to cruisers in size. Because they are built to different operational requirements than the Arleigh Burke-class ships, such as for carrying extra equipment for commanding a squadron, the Kongō-class ships' internal arrangement is quite different from the original design on which they are based. Recognisable external features are the vertical mast and the sleek sides of the bridge.

The Kongō class vessels are being modified to serve in a theater missile defense role, with the primary intention of countering North Korean ballistic missiles. This purpose and a financial crisis made the Flight II variant of the Arleigh Burke class the choice for the follow-on class to the Tachikaze and Asakaze. The new destroyer was named Atago in 2005.

Kongō class destroyers are powered by four Ishikawajima-Harima LM2500 gas turbines.

In December 2007, Japan conducted a successful test of the SM-3 block IA against a ballistic missile aboard JDS Kongō (DDG-173). This was the first time a Japanese ship was selected to launch the interceptor missile during a test of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System. In previous tests they provided tracking and communications.[1][2] Afterward, Japan has also undertaken another two successful Ballistic Missile Defense test aboard JDS Myōkō in October 2009[3] and aboard JDS Kirishima in October 2010.[4] While one test aboard JDS Chōkai in November 2008 failed to intercept the target.[5]

Namesakes

The Kongō-class destroyers are named after mountains in Japan, and all four also share their names with World War II era Japanese warships. Kongō and Kirishima share their names with two ships of the Kongō-class battlecruiser, while the two ships share their names with the heavy cruisers Myōkō and Chōkai.

Ships in the class

Kongō (DDG-173) being refueled
Myōkō (DDG-175)
Chōkai (DDG-176)
Building no. Pennant no. Name Laid down Launched Commissioned Home port
2313 DDG-173 Kongō 8 May 1990 26 September 1991 25 March 1993 Sasebo
2314 DDG-174 Kirishima 7 April 1992 19 August 1993 16 March 1995 Yokosuka
2315 DDG-175 Myōkō 8 April 1993 5 October 1994 14 March 1996 Maizuru
2316 DDG-176 Chōkai 29 May 1995 27 August 1996 20 March 1998 Sasebo

The Kongō class in popular culture

The Kongō class has been featured in several works of fiction. In the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion, it appears in the 7th chapter, when the 02 unit coming from Germany arrives to Japan (also seen is the Arleigh Burke class DDG-61). In High School of the Dead, the Kongō's CIC intercepts three of nuclear warheads while the Arleigh Burke class USS Curtis Wilbur fails to shoot down the fourth.

The JMSDF allowed the producers of the Japanese movie 亡国のイージス ("Boukoku no Aegis") to shoot aboard the DDG-175 Myōkō, which stood in as the film's Aegis destroyer, called the いそかぜ (Isokaze). The DDG-175 hull number was retained for the movie. The ship would later appear in the 2012 movie Battleship. In the Tom Clancy novel Debt of Honor, the fictional lead ship of the line, the Mutsu, figured prominently in a Japanese plot to wrest the US Navy's control of the Western Pacific region.

The Ace Combat series of flight simulation video games used the Kongō class in several missions where the player faces naval forces. The game "Wargame: Red Dragon" depicts the Kongō class destroyer as one of the ships available to NATO forces.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kongou class destroyers.