[Yang Nakgyu's Defense video] The 30-Year History of the Republic of Korea Navy Submarines

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] The Navy has been operating and the Submarine Command has marked its 30th anniversary. The submarines operated over 30 years have achieved a safe navigation record of 2.8 million miles (4,506,000 km). The 2.8 million miles is the distance traveled by the Navy's midget submarines and submarines since the first introduction of midget submarines in 1984, equivalent to circling the Earth 129 times.

According to the Navy on the 1st, the predecessor of our Navy's Submarine Command, the 57th Submarine Flotilla, was established in 1990. The 57th Submarine Flotilla was reorganized into the 9th Submarine Flotilla in October 1995 and was elevated to the Submarine Command in February 2015.

The Navy first operated midget submarines (or submersibles) in 1984. The military approved the development project for a 200-ton class midget submarine in November 1976. Named "Dolgorae," this submarine was launched on April 5, 1983, successfully built with domestic independent technology, and was delivered to the Navy on December 29, 1984, beginning its operation. After a year of operational test evaluations including anti-submarine warfare training, it quietly performed the mission of protecting the national territorial waters for nearly 20 years before honorably retiring on December 31, 2003.

Subsequently, in 1992, the 1,200-ton Jangbogo-class submarine was acquired from Germany. It is Korea's first submarine. The Jangbogo-class achieved an initial safe navigation record of 300,000 miles (408,000 km). In 1996, it made the first solo deep-sea voyage between the Korean Peninsula and Guam, and in 1997, it traveled submerged to and from Hawaii. Since 1998, it has participated in more than 20 overseas joint exercises.

The Submarine Command conducts a "master-apprentice style education" where seniors provide one-on-one training to juniors to cultivate submarine crew members. A six-month training period is required to qualify as a submarine crew member. Before departure, submarine crew members check equipment status according to the "Posture Setting Checklist," and department heads verify equipment abnormalities two to three times.

Since 2013, the Submarine Command has opened an "International Submarine Course" education program, providing commissioned training for foreign military officers and non-commissioned officers. A total of 76 personnel from 10 countries including the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Turkey have been trained. In response to the Fourth Industrial Revolution era, the Submarine Command is also promoting the establishment of a "Smart Submarine Command System." By applying satellite communication and big data technologies to the submarine command communication system, it plans to enable submarines to communicate rapidly with surface ships and others.

On the afternoon of the day, the Navy held a 30th anniversary ceremony presided over by Navy Submarine Command Commander Jeong Seung-gyun to commemorate "2.8 million miles of safe navigation without accidents." Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Park Han-ki sent a congratulatory message for the ceremony, saying, "I commend the efforts of the troops who have protected maritime sovereignty with the strongest underwater power and demonstrated remarkable performance in combined and joint operations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.