Saturday, September 3, 2022

South Korea Gives Up On Its Carrier Ambitions (For Now)

U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Michael Chen/Released  

Warzone/The Drive: South Korea Drops Aircraft Carrier Ambitions, Doubles Down On Submarines 

Instead of a new aircraft carrier, Seoul is investing in advanced missile submarines that better suit a strategy aimed at confronting North Korea. 

South Korea’s ambitious plans to build its first aircraft carrier, known as CVX, appear to be under serious threat, with the news that the project has not been funded as part of the country’s proposed 2023 defense budget. That also raises questions about Seoul’s plans to operate F-35B stealth fighters but should be good news for its submarine fleet, which is earmarked to receive more funding, including for Dosan Ahn Changho class attack submarines capable of launching ballistic missiles. 

Confirmation that the CVX is not to be funded in 2023 came yesterday from Naval News, which had already predicted that South Korea’s carrier program could lose out in the next defense budget.  

Read more ....  

Update: CVX officially axed from South Korean defense budget in 2023 (Naval News)  

WNU Editor: My guess is that they made the decision was made that such a vessel would not last long in a shooting war.

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