Malaysia's first Maharaja Lela littoral combat ship starts sea trials after years of delays.

On January 20, 2026, Malaysia’s first Maharaja Lela-class littoral combat ship, KD Maharaja Lela (2501), departed Lumut Naval Shipyard to begin initial sea trials after completing dockside checks.

As reported by Malaysia Military Review on January 20, 2026, Malaysia’s first Maharaja Lela-class littoral combat ship, KD Maharaja Lela (2501), departed Lumut Naval Shipyard to begin initial sea trials after completing dockside checks. AIS data and contemporaneous imagery later confirmed the ship was operating off Pangkor Island under tug escort. The movement marked the first sustained at-sea testing phase for the long-delayed Royal Malaysian Navy program, with additional hulls simultaneously progressing through outfitting and construction stages.
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On January 20, 2026, Malaysia’s first Maharaja Lela-class littoral combat ship, KD Maharaja Lela (2501), departed its berth at Lumut Naval Shipyard to begin initial sea trials, marking a long-awaited step for the Royal Malaysian Navy’s LCS program. (Picture source: LUNAS)

Malaysia’s first Maharaja Lela-class littoral combat ship, the KD Maharaja Lela (2501), departed its berth at Lumut Naval Shipyard to begin initial sea trials, marking the transition from dockside activity to open-water testing for the lead ship of the Royal Malaysian Navy’s long-delayed program. Video footage showed the vessel being towed from the harbor after completing dockside checks, confirming that preparations had reached the trial phase. Shortly after departure, on January 27, 2026, AIS tracking placed the ship off Pangkor Island, accompanied by tugboats, and contemporaneous images showed the ship underway at sea. This movement represented the first sustained trial activity for the class and occurred within a broader sequence of program updates involving multiple hulls at different stages. The event also coincided with renewed political and institutional attention on the program’s progress.

At the same time as KD Maharaja Lela began sea trials, Lumut Naval Shipyard released material illustrating parallel progress on other ships of the class. A time-lapse sequence documented construction phases of the third vessel, KD Sharif Masahor (2503), showing the completion of its upper structure and the installation of major external features. The footage also confirmed that the ship’s pennant number had been applied, formally identifying it within the Royal Malaysian Navy’s fleet sequence. In contrast, the second hull, KD Raja Muda Nala (2502), remained at the shipyard and continued outfitting activities rather than transitioning to trials. These updates placed one ship at sea, one ship in outfitting, and one ship advancing through structural completion, indicating staggered but concurrent production and test activity.

The Maharaja Lela program has remained under sustained public and parliamentary scrutiny following years of delays and cost overruns that disrupted its original schedule. Launched in 2011, the project stalled several years later, leading to a government investigation and a temporary suspension before work resumed in 2020. Lawmakers were scheduled to visit the Lumut facility in Perak later the same month as the sea-trials departure to review progress and assess adherence to revised timelines. Under current planning, Malaysia intends to operate five Maharaja Lela-class warships through the 2030s, with the first unit expected to be commissioned in 2026. This reduced total reflects changes made after the original plan for six ships proved unattainable under earlier contractual and financial conditions.

The KD Maharaja Lela, also known as LCS 1, is based on an enlarged variant of the Gowind 2500 corvette proposed by the French Naval Group, formerly DCNS, and incorporates technology transfers agreed during the program’s early phases. The ship was laid down on March 8, 2016, at Lumut, and launched on August 24, 2017, before construction slowed and later halted as the program encountered financial and contractual disruptions for several years. In its finalized configuration, the littoral combat ship, also classified to as a frigate, has a full-load displacement of about 3,100 tons, a waterline length of 111 meters, a beam of 16 meters at the main deck, and a draft of 3.85 meters. Crew size is consistently cited at 138 personnel, although some descriptions refer to accommodation for about 130, depending on mission configuration. Compared with the standard Gowind corvette, the Malaysian variant features increased displacement and internal volume, enabling longer deployments and expanded onboard systems capacity.

Propulsion is provided by a combined diesel and diesel (CODAD) arrangement using four MTU 20V 1163 M94 diesel engines, each rated at about 7,400 kW or roughly 9,900 shaft horsepower, for a combined output of about 29,600 kW. This allows the Maharaja Lela to reach a maximum speed of 28 knots and a range of 5,000 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 15 knots. Endurance is stated at approximately 21 days, and survivability parameters extend to Sea State 9. The ship incorporates a stern flight deck and enclosed hangar designed to operate a single medium helicopter, including the Super Lynx 300, Fennec AS555, AW139, and EC725, or unmanned aerial systems. Aviation facilities are rated for aircraft with a maximum weight of up to 10 tons, supporting sustained embarked aviation operations.

The combat system and sensor suite combine surface, air, and subsurface warfare functions within a single integrated architecture. The ship uses the SETIS combat management system and is equipped with SMART-S Mk2 surveillance radar, Rheinmetall TMEO Mk2 and TMX/EO Mk2 electro-optical fire control systems, and a Thales anti-submarine warfare suite combining a Kingklip Mk1 hull-mounted sonar with a CAPTAS-2 towed array. Electronic warfare and decoy systems include the Thales Vigile electronic support measures system and the Wallop Super Barricade decoy launcher. This configuration supports simultaneous tracking and engagement tasks in congested littoral and near-open-sea environments, consistent with the class’s intended operational areas.

Armament comprises a Bofors 57 mm main gun, two MSI DS30M 30 mm cannons, and two triple J+S torpedo launchers for anti-submarine warfare. Missile fit is planned around 16 Sylver vertical launch cells intended for VL MICA short-range surface-to-air missiles and an anti-ship capability centered on eight Naval Strike Missiles, replacing older missile types associated with classic Gowind variants. Cost figures across the program evolved over time, ranging from an initial RM9B ceiling for six ships (about $2,223,000,000) to a revised RM11.2B figure for five ships ($2,766,400,000), with per-unit values cited at about RM2.24B ($553,280,000), including technology transfer under later agreements. Within this context, the departure of KD Maharaja Lela for sea trials represents a concrete step toward completing a program that is now oriented toward delivering five operational ships starting in 2026.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.