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Home» News»Kawasaki Launches ‘Hakugei’ – Second Taigei-class Submarine for the JMSDF
Kawasaki Launches Hakugei Second Taigei-class Submarine for the JMSDF
Launch ceremony of Hakugei. JMSDF picture.

Kawasaki Launches ‘Hakugei’ – Second Taigei-class Submarine for the JMSDF

Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) launched today "Hakugei" at its shipyard in Kobe. It is the second of the new Taigei-class, the latest class of advanced diesel electric submarines (SSK) for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).

Xavier Vavasseur 14 Oct 2021

Hakugei means “White Whale”. Taigei-class submarines are named after large fish. The first submarine of the class, Taigei (meaning “Great Whale”) was launched by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) shipyard in Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture in October 2020. Taigei is scheduled to be commissioned into the JMSDF in March 2022, after which it will be used as a test submarine, according to the “National Defense Program Guidelines for FY 2019 and beyond” published in December 2018. In other words, Taigei will be the dedicated ship to conduct all future tests of technology on JMSDF submarines. This means that Hakugei will be the first boat of the class able to conduct operational deployments.

Taigei started sea trials in late July 2021:

SS513たいげい、初公試に出港しました(^-^) pic.twitter.com/bIM5xmkBiz

— 翼に日じーっマークの! (@f2aaiko) July 28, 2021

The external appearance of Taigei-class submarines is not much different from the Sōryū-class, but inside of it is a completely different submarine. First, the Taigei-class uses lithium-ion batteries instead of the 4V-275R Mk. III AIP system, which was installed aboard the first 10 Sōryū-class submarines.

With the launch of Hakugei, Japan now has four submarines equipped with Lithium-Ion batteries in the water (the last two submarines of the Soryu-class and the first two Taigei-class).

Launch of Hakugei:

特別クルーズ終了。ほぼ進水を眺めるだけの航行だったが充分過ぎる😆
目的は果たしたので三宮まで後退。#30SS #はくげい #神戸 pic.twitter.com/pqISvibq3O

— B.T@くれーじーくえいるヒ窓口 (@crazyquail_BT) October 14, 2021

Secondly, the capabilities of the sonar and combat command system have been improved, as well as the use of new acoustic absorbent materials and a floating floor structure to make it quieter. It is also equipped with Torpedo Counter Measures (TCM), which ejects decoys to evade enemy torpedoes for improved survivability.

Basic Specifications of Taigei

Standard Displacement: about 3000 tons

Length: 84 meters

Total width: 9.1 meters

Crew: about 70

Propulsion: Diesel Electric Propulsion (with lithium-ion batteries)

Japan JMSDF Submarine Taigei-class 2021-10-14
Tags Japan JMSDF Submarine Taigei-class
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Authors

Posted by : Xavier Vavasseur
Xavier is based in Paris, France. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Information Systems and a Master of Business Administration from Florida Institute of Technology (FIT). Xavier has been covering naval defense topics for nearly a decade.

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