South Korean Navy finds operational defects in three of its nine Type 214 submarines

Asia-Pacific, News February 21, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

The South Korean Navy (ROK Navy) announced that major operational defects have been detected in three of its nine Son Won-il-class submarines, which is the South Korean variant of Type 214 submarines.

The fault was detected in the cables of the inverter module, which plays an important role in controlling the submarine’s propulsion system.

The three defected submarines of the Son Won-il-class are:
– ROK Son Won-il (First of the class, commissioned in 2006)
– ROK Yoon Bong-gil (Third of the class, commissioned in 2016)
– ROK Yoo Gwan-soon (Sixth of the class, commissioned in 2017)

Each of the three submarines would have to go through an extensive overhaul and parts replacement, which is not possible to be carried out in South Korea. Although the submarines were assembled by the Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea, the inverter modules cannot be fixed by them due to legal barriers.

The inverter modules used in the Type 214 submarines are produced by Siemens, which also holds the intellectual property rights for the technology used in making the inverters. Therefore, the parts must be shipped to Germany to be replaced and repaired, which is expected to take no less than four months for each replacement, leaving each of the three submarines to stay out of action for at least six months.

South Korea has paid around $6 million to Siemens for repair works. After repairing each submarine one by one, it would not be until February 2023 that all three submarines would be back in service for the South Korean Navy.

^{Republic of Korea Navy sailors aboard the Sohn Wonyil class diesel-electric submarine ROKS Yun Bonggil (SS 077), prepare to conduct line handling duties as the submarine arrives at Naval Base Guam, June 5, 2019. (Image Credit: U.S. Navy Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Chase Stephens)}

Son Won-il class submarines are Type 214 diesel-electric powered submarines originally designed and developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft, a German shipbuilding company. Pakistan, Greece, Portugal, and Turkey also have a fleet of Type 214 submarines. Each Type 214 submarine has a displacement capacity of 1800 tons. It is 65 meters long and 6.3 meters wide at the beam. The submarine can reach a speed of 10 knots on the surface and 20 knots while being submerged.

The Son Won-il class submarines are considered to be one of the most valuable assets of the South Korean Navy working at the front lines to deter North Korea. With North Korea’s increasing aggression in the maritime region, the absence of these submarines would severely impact the readiness of the South Korean Navy.