DEFENSE/Taiwan's Navy set to take delivery of second homemade corvette next month

Taipei, May 29 (CNA) Taiwan's Navy is expected to take delivery of the nation's second domestically built Tuo Chiang-class corvette next month, a military source told CNA on Monday.

The Tuo Chiang-class corvette is a Taiwanese-designed and manufactured class of fast and stealthy multi-purpose corvettes built for the Republic of China (Taiwan's official name) Navy.

A prototype of the corvette named Tuo Chiang (PGG-618) was commissioned in 2015. Meanwhile, the first full version of the Tuo Chiang-class corvette, the Ta Chiang, was launched in December 2020.

The second one, the Fu Chiang was launched in September 2022, while the third and latest one, the Hsu Chiang, was launched in February.

A military source told CNA on Monday that the Fu Chiang corvette will be delivered to the Navy sometime in June to officially begin related training before being commissioned to the armed forces.

According to the Navy, the Tuo Chiang-class ship has a maximum speed of 30 knots, displacement of 685 tonnes, and an operational range of 1,800 nautical miles.

It was developed to address a common weakness of traditional small warships, such as patrol craft and corvettes, which is that they are not fit for use over extended periods of time in the rough seas around Taiwan.

The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes are fitted with subsonic Hsiung Feng-II missiles, supersonic Hsiung Feng-III anti-ship missiles, a 76 mm cannon, and Tien-Chien II air defense missiles.

They are named after rivers and creeks in Taiwan and/or famous ROC Naval vessels, with the names selected following a public vote.

Tuo Chiang is named after a former patrol vessel that helped to defend Chinese warships in a cross-Taiwan Strait sea battle in 1958. Fu Chiang and Hsu Chiang are named after rivers in eastern Hualien County and northern Keelung City.

The Navy is set to build a total of 11 Tuo Chiang-class corvettes by the end of 2026.