Hanjin Heavy to build 4 high-speed landing craft for Korean Navy.

South Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has signed a contract with local shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction (HHIC) for the construction of four high-speed hovercraft landing ships (LSF-II) for the Republic of Korea Navy.

ROK Navy’s High-speed Hovercraft Landing Ship (Picture source: HHIC)

Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co. (HHIC) has bagged an additional order to build four fast landing craft for the South Korean navy. According to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, the deal is worth just over 265 million U.S. dollars. With the latest deal, the Korean shipbuilder has achieved 150 per cent of its order target for this year, according to the company on Tuesday.

HHIC would have built a total of eight fast landing craft for the Korean navy, including the order it won this week. The company currently is constructing two fast landing craft under the order it secured in 2016. In 2007, it delivered its first two fast landing craft for the navy. The company will build the four new fast landing craft to deliver them by December 2024.

The next-generation high-speed landing ship HANJIN Heavy Industries & Construction just signed is a 155-tonne vessel (27.9m in length, 14.6m in width). It is capable of travelling up to 40 knots (74km/h) carrying 150 troops or 1 tank & 24 soldiers. Furthermore, this military vessel can travel as far as 185km without additional fueling. The landing ship fast (LSF) refers to an air-cushion vehicle (ACV) which travels over water by blowing high-pressure air.

HANJIN Heavy Industries & Construction is South Korea’s only national defence facility provider with the manufacturing technology of high-speed landing ships (LSF-II) which were built in the 1980s and next-generation landing vessels (LSF-II). The company explained that it has proven its unrivalled excellence in the manufacture of special-purpose vessels.