The Republic of Korea Navy (ROK Navy) has launched its third next-generation Aegis destroyer, the 8,200-ton Daeho Kim Jong-seo, at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ Ulsan shipyard.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries held the launching ceremony on September 30, attended by South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and about 350 government, military and industry representatives.
The destroyer is 170 meters long, 21 meters wide and designed to reach a top speed of 30 knots. It features an integrated sonar system developed with domestic technology and a ballistic missile system.
According to HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, the new destroyer will be capable of interception missions that the navy’s existing Sejong the Great-class Aegis destroyers cannot perform.
Following its delivery, the navy will operate six Aegis destroyers, five of which have been designed and built by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries.
The Daeho Kim Jong-seo is the third ship of the Republic of Korea Navy’s destroyers known as the KDX-III Batch-II, next-generation Aegis destroyers. The class is designed as a core element of South Korea’s three-axis defense system, including its ballistic missile defense capability. The first batch of three Sejong the Great-class destroyers was commissioned between 2008 and 2012.
HD Hyundai Heavy Industries delivered the lead ship, ROKS Jeongjo the Great, to the Navy in November 2024. The 8,200-ton destroyer was the first KDX-III Batch-II ship and the fourth Aegis destroyer designed and built in Korea using indigenous technology.
The second ship, ROKS Dasan Jeong Yak-yong, was launched in September 2025 and is undergoing sea trials ahead of delivery to the Navy. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries said the class incorporates improved radar and combat systems, enhanced detection and tracking of ballistic missile threats, domestically developed sonar, and improved stealth characteristics compared with the earlier Sejong the Great-class.
The destroyers are equipped with SM-3 and SM-6 interceptors for ballistic missile defense, while their anti-submarine warfare capabilities include domestically developed sonar, long- and short-range torpedoes and the ability to operate MH-60R Seahawk helicopters. The class also uses four gas turbines together with two hybrid-electric drive units intended to reduce fuel consumption during cruising and underwater noise.
The third destroyer is scheduled to be delivered to the Republic of Korea Navy in December 2027.