Japan is procuring compact, missile-laden multi-mission frigates at a rapid pace to deter China and Russia effectively in the East China Sea and the Indo-Pacific region.
On July 2, Japanese shipbuilder Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) launched the latest frigate, the eleventh of a planned fleet of 12 Mogami-class multirole frigates, for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).
Named Tatsuta, the 133 meter-long vessel (pennant number FFM-11) entered the water during a ceremony held on the day at the company’s Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works in Nagasaki Prefecture.
The vessel is named after the Tatsuta River (竜田川, Tatsuta-gawa), a tributary of the Yamato River that flows near Ikoma City, Nara Prefecture located roughly in the middle of Honshu of the Japanese archipelago. All ships of the class are named after famous rivers in Japan, designated as a “Class A river.”
The shipyard will now proceed to the fitting out stage of the frigate, ahead of its delivery and commissioning set for by the end of fiscal year 2026 that ends March 31, 2027, according to the JMSDF.
This is the third Japanese military ship to bear the name Tatsuta, following a dispatch ship and the second ship of the Tenryū class of light cruisers in the Imperial Japanese Navy.
As neighboring China expands the size and capabilities of its naval forces, Japan plans to defend its southwestern Nansei island chain, which spans about 1,200 km from Kagoshima to Okinawa, stretching southwest toward Taiwan by increasing surveillance missions in Japanese coastal waters. The chain includes the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, which are administered by Japan but also claimed by China and Taiwan. In addition, Russia’s military has been increasingly sending naval and air forces to join exercises held by China in the Sea of Japan and elsewhere.
Equipped with compact hull, JS Tatsuta is being built for about 58.3 billion yen ($406 million) under a contract awarded in February 2024, according to the JMSDF. As with the other ships of the class, the 3,900-tonne vessel will have a crew complement of about 90, a beam of 16.3 m, and a hull draught of 9 m.
Powered by a combined diesel and gas (CODAG) propulsion system featuring two MAN 12V28/33D STC diesel engines and one Rolls-Royce MT30 gas turbine, the Mogami-class is capable of attaining a top speed of more than 30 knots. The Mogami-class marks the first instalment of a CODAG system on any JMSDF ship.
The FFM is equipped with a wide variety of weapons and systems as listed below:
- BAE Systems 5-inch (127-mm) 62-caliber Mk 45 Mod 4 naval gun system ×1
- Japan Steel Works 12.7mm Remote Weapon System ×2
- Mk.41 VLS (16 cells)
- Raytheon SeaRAM ×1
- MHI Type 17 surface-to-ship guided missile (SSM-2) 4-tube launcher x 2
- Mitsubishi Electric OPY-2 multifunction Radar
- Mitsubishi Electric OAX-3EO/IR sensors
- Hitachi OQQ-11 anti-mine sonar
- NEC OQQ-25 anti-submarine sonar (VDS/TASS)
- UUV (OZZ-5 by MHI) and USV (by JMU Defense Systems) for mine countermeasures
- Sea mines for offensive mine warfare
Upgraded Mogami-class frigate and Australia
The Japanese defense ministry plans to acquire a total of 12 New FFMs that will be the upgraded Mogami-class.
In an epoch-making move, last November the Australian government shortlisted Japan’s MHI and Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) over Spanish and South Korean contenders to build the Royal Australian Navy (RAN)’s SEA3000 General-Purpose Frigate (GPF) program, which aims to replace its ageing ANZAC-class frigates with 11 state-of-the-art vessels.
MHI has pitched the New FFM to the Albanese government; TKMS has offered its MEKO A-200 design. The Australian government is expected to select either MHI or TKMS by the end of this year, with the contract scheduled to be signed by March of 2026. The first three ships will be built in either Japan or Germany, and the remaining eight will be constructed at a shipyard in Western Australia.
Will Australia strategically choose the upgraded Mogami-class frigate to strengthen bilateral cooperation with Japan in the face of the growing threat that China poses to the Indo-Pacific region?
Or will it opt for a German-designed frigate that is familiar to – and compatible with – the RAN, as the German MEKO A-200 design is a bigger and more modern version of the Australia’s existing Anzac-class?
Since Japanese defense officials view this bid not only as a “business proposal,” but as an “important strategic endeavor,” great attention is currently focused on the Australian government’s final decision.
A previous bidding process ended in disappointment when Australia selected France’s Shortfin Barracuda submarines, rather than Japan’s Soryu class, for the RAN’s Collins class submarine replacement project. The Australia-France deal was later scrapped entirely in favor of nuclear submarines under the AUKUS framework.
Australia’s Defence Ministry plans to spend up to $10 billion Australian dollars ($6.6 billion USD) on Sea 3000 out to 2034, meaning further spending after 2035.
The first two New FFMs for the JMSDF are scheduled to be commissioned in fiscal year 2028, and if construction proceeds smoothly, all 12 New FFMs will be in service by fiscal year 2032.
