DEFENSE/2 stealth missile corvettes to be commissioned into Navy in May

Taipei, April 22 (CNA) Taiwan's Navy is expected to commission two more domestically-built Tou Jiang-class stealth missile corvettes into service next month, meaning they will be officially ready to safeguard the waters around Taiwan, a source told CNA Monday.

The unnamed source familiar with the matter said that the two corvettes, the Hsu Jiang (PGG-621) and the Wu Jiang (PGG-623), will be officially commissioned into the Navy in an early May ceremony.

The two corvettes, launched in February and June 2023, respectively, were delivered to the Navy this February. They are the third and fourth mass-produced Tou Jiang-class stealth missile corvettes.

The Tuo Jiang-class corvette is a Taiwan-designed and manufactured class of fast and stealthy multi-purpose corvette built for the Republic of China (Taiwan) Navy.

Other than the prototype, Tuo Jiang (PGG-618), which was commissioned in 2015, the first batch comprised six corvettes, with the fifth and sixth, An Jiang and Wan Jiang, set to be delivered to the Navy soon, the unnamed source added.

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

The Tuo Jiang-class corvette has a wave-piercing catamaran design, is 60.4 meters in length and 14 meters in width, and is capable of a top speed of 30-plus knots and a range of 1,800 nautical miles, according to the Navy.

The corvette is fitted with subsonic Hsiung Feng-II (HF-2) missiles, supersonic Hsiung Feng-III (HF-3) anti-ship missiles, a 76mm cannon and Sea Sword II carrier-based medium-range air defense missiles, giving them the ability to hit air and sea targets simultaneously, Navy data shows.