Japan commissions second Asahi-class guided-missile destroyer

The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) commissioned its second Asahi-class guided-missile destroyer in a ceremony held on 27 February in Nagasaki Prefecture.

Named JS Shiranui (pennant number 120), the 151 m-long vessel was inducted into the service’s Escort Division 7 of Escort Flotilla 3, based in Ominato Base in Mutsu, Aomori Prefecture, shortly after being handed over by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) at its Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, according to a JMSDF statement.

Shiranui , which is the first JMSDF ship to feature a periscope-detection radar, was launched in October 2017 and began sea trials in July 2018. The first vessel of the class, JS Asahi (pennant number 119), was commissioned in March 2018.

A JMSDF spokesperson told Jane’s on 4 March that there are no plans to build more ships of this class. Instead Japan plans to order a total of eight 3,900 tonne-class multirole frigates by fiscal year 2020/21.

According to Jane’s Fighting Ships , the Asahi class has a standard displacement of 5,100 tonnes (5,628 tons), and is powered by two General Electric LM2500 gas turbine engines in a combined gas turbine-electric and gas-turbine (COGLAG) configuration.

The class has a top speed of 30 kt and a crew complement of 220, according to the JMSDF. Each of the ships can accommodate a Mitsubishi (Sikorsky) SH-60K helicopter on the flight deck, and another one in a hangar deck.