The AEGIS Frigate Out East

So you hate the Littoral Combat Ship? Looking for that Frigate alternative? How about a frigate based on a modern, mature, evolved design? Look no further than South Korea.

The Navy plans to launch six 5,600-ton "mini-Aegis'' destroyers between 2019 and 2026 in an effort to help facilitate coastal and blue-water operations, the service said Tuesday.

The plan was unveiled in a report submitted to a National Assembly inspection of the Navy at the Gyeryongdae military compound in South Chungcheong Province.

The medium-sized KDX-IIA destroyers equipped with SPY radar and close-in weapon systems will be a core part of the Navy's strategic mobile fleet led by 7,600-ton KDX-III destroyers, it said.

The mobile fleet is to consist of two KDX-III destroyer-led squadrons involving KDX-II or KDX-IIA ships, support vessels, new frigates and attack submarines. A new naval base to be built on the southern island of Jeju by 2014 will serve as homeport for the fleet.

South Korea expects to build three KDX-IIA hulls for the price of one KDX-III hull (KSX-III runs about $860 million per hull), with a KDX-IIA price coming in around $286 million each. As I understand it, all the system costs will pile on top of that. Ultimately, this will be a ship that costs South Korea about the same as we are spending on the LCS.

It is a bit worrisome how much more bang for the buck the rest of the world is getting out of new Navy ships while we are stuck on a 70s-80s design Burke with questionable growth options for the future.