Text Fwd: Jeju to Open Eco-Friendly Naval Base in 2014

Image source: 'The Navy has released an aerial view of an eco-friendly naval base to be built on Jeju by 2014. The base is to serve as a new tourism attraction on Jeju, as well as a forwarddeployed base for a strategic mobile fleet of two Aegis destroyer-led squadrons. / Courtesy of Navy

Korea Times
09-23-2009 23:04
Jeju to Open Eco-Friendly Naval Base in 2014
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

After years of mudslinging, a project to build a strategic naval base on the southern resort island of Jeju is set to begin later this year after Jeju Governor Kim Tae-hwan last month survived a recall vote over his plan to allow the base.

The local office of the National Election Commission declared the vote invalid as voter turnout came to only 11.1 percent, not even close to the 33.3 percent required.

A coalition of local residents and progressive civic groups are still opposed to the plan, which they argue would cause environmental hazards and harm the image of the "peace island."

Government and Navy officials rebutted the claim, pledging to build a modern naval base that would also be used as a luxury commercial dock as well as an environmentally friendly tourist spot.

"We're sure that the Jeju base will have many positive effects on the island in terms of job creation, tourism, commercial interests and others," a Navy official on Jeju said on condition of anonymity. "In short, the base will not only serve as a military dock but also an eco-friendly tourism hub."

Citing a recent feasibility study, he said that over the next 30 years economic benefits from the commercial use of the naval base will double the current tourism profits of the island.

The benefits will offset the 53.4 billion won needed to allow commercial boats to dock at the port, he added.

Construction of the base is scheduled to start in December after reclamation work and approval by the Self-Governing Jeju Province of a feasibility study on environmental effects. The base is projected to be operational in 2014.

A total of 953 billion won will be spent to build the 480,000-square-meter base adjacent to Gangjeong Village in the southern part of the island.

The base's port will be long enough to accommodate 20 warships and two 150,000-ton cruise liners, according to Navy officials. Tourism sites, including an eco-friendly park, will be built alongside the port, they said.

Strategic Mobile Fleet

The Jeju base will serve as the home port for the Navy's strategic mobile fleet of two Aegis destroyer-led squadrons to be initially operational beginning next year.

The mobile squadrons, which are designed to be rapidly deployed in regional conflict, consist of 4,500-ton KDX-II destroyers, 7,600-ton Aegis-equipped KDX-III destroyers, Type-214 1,800-ton submarines, anti-submarine Lynx helicopters and frigates, among others.

The Navy has two of the planned three KDX-III Aegis destroyers with the lead ship, Sejong the Great, deployed since last December. The second ship, Yi I, was launched last November for commissioning late this year.

The Aegis combat system, built by Lockheed Martin, is the world's premier surface-to-air and fire-control system, capable of conducting simultaneous operations against aircraft, ballistic and cruise missiles, ships and submarines. Only a handful of countries, including the United States, Spain, Japan and Norway, deploy Aegis warships.

The KDX-III is one of the most advanced Aegis warships. Its SPY-1D radar can simultaneously track about 1,000 aircraft within a 500-kilometer radius, providing 360-degree coverage.

The squadron is expected to develop the South Korean Navy's blue-water operational capability beyond coastal defense against a North Korean invasion, Navy officials say.

In line with the plan, the Air Force also plans to build a base for a search-and-rescue unit to help facilitate the Navy's operations in the southern waters.

"Jeju has long been considered a tactical, strategic point to secure southern sea lanes for transporting energy supplies and to conduct mobile operations in the case of an emergency in the region," the Navy official said.

"Following the construction, the Navy will be able to successfully conduct long-range operations to protect our commercial vessels in blue waters, including the Malacca Strait, as well as carry out full-scale operations around the Korean Peninsula," he said.

He emphasized that the base makes sense in terms of both military and commercial interests, as the nation`s economy heavily depends on trade, 96 percent of which is transported by sea.

Lingering Backlash

Despite the government's plan for the Jeju base, some local residents backed by progressive civic activists vehemently resist the naval base initiative.

Navy officials claim opponents are making the excessive demand that the central government offer a financial compensation package of about 480 billion won to the local community, in addition to the indemnity of 7.8 billion won already paid to Gangjeong residents for disrupting the fishery industry.

Opponents have argued that the construction doesn't necessarily translate to future economic growth, citing the case of Japan's Okinawa, where American troops are being stationed and the local economy is stagnant.

Some civic activists also raised suspicions of the project being related to the country's joining in the U.S.-led missile defense (MD) system, making Jeju vulnerable to international terrorism and becoming a potential military target for anti-U.S. militants.

The Navy admits that U.S. aircraft carriers can visit the port, but makes clear that it has no plan to join the MD system or make the port a permanent station for U.S. forces.

Supporters of the plan have insisted the naval port will bring economic benefits to local people by inducing a great amount of direct investment into the region from the construction of infrastructure for sailors.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr








After years of mudslinging, a project to build a strategic naval base on the southern resort island of Jeju is set to begin later this year after Jeju Governor Kim Tae-hwan last month survived a recall vote over his plan to allow the base.

The local office of the National Election Commission declared the vote invalid as voter turnout came to only 11.1 percent, not even close to the 33.3 percent required.

A coalition of local residents and progressive civic groups are still opposed to the plan, which they argue would cause environmental hazards and harm the image of the "peace island."

Government and Navy officials rebutted the claim, pledging to build a modern naval base that would also be used as a luxury commercial dock as well as an environmentally friendly tourist spot.

"We're sure that the Jeju base will have many positive effects on the island in terms of job creation, tourism, commercial interests and others," a Navy official on Jeju said on condition of anonymity. "In short, the base will not only serve as a military dock but also an eco-friendly tourism hub."

Citing a recent feasibility study, he said that over the next 30 years economic benefits from the commercial use of the naval base will double the current tourism profits of the island.

The benefits will offset the 53.4 billion won needed to allow commercial boats to dock at the port, he added.

Construction of the base is scheduled to start in December after reclamation work and approval by the Self-Governing Jeju Province of a feasibility study on environmental effects. The base is projected to be operational in 2014.

A total of 953 billion won will be spent to build the 480,000-square-meter base adjacent to Gangjeong Village in the southern part of the island.

The base's port will be long enough to accommodate 20 warships and two 150,000-ton cruise liners, according to Navy officials. Tourism sites, including an eco-friendly park, will be built alongside the port, they said.



Strategic Mobile Fleet

The Jeju base will serve as the home port for the Navy's strategic mobile fleet of two Aegis destroyer-led squadrons to be initially operational beginning next year.

The mobile squadrons, which are designed to be rapidly deployed in regional conflict, consist of 4,500-ton KDX-II destroyers, 7,600-ton Aegis-equipped KDX-III destroyers, Type-214 1,800-ton submarines, anti-submarine Lynx helicopters and frigates, among others.

The Navy has two of the planned three KDX-III Aegis destroyers with the lead ship, Sejong the Great, deployed since last December. The second ship, Yi I, was launched last November for commissioning late this year.

The Aegis combat system, built by Lockheed Martin, is the world's premier surface-to-air and fire-control system, capable of conducting simultaneous operations against aircraft, ballistic and cruise missiles, ships and submarines. Only a handful of countries, including the United States, Spain, Japan and Norway, deploy Aegis warships.

The KDX-III is one of the most advanced Aegis warships. Its SPY-1D radar can simultaneously track about 1,000 aircraft within a 500-kilometer radius, providing 360-degree coverage.

The squadron is expected to develop the South Korean Navy's blue-water operational capability beyond coastal defense against a North Korean invasion, Navy officials say.

In line with the plan, the Air Force also plans to build a base for a search-and-rescue unit to help facilitate the Navy's operations in the southern waters.

"Jeju has long been considered a tactical, strategic point to secure southern sea lanes for transporting energy supplies and to conduct mobile operations in the case of an emergency in the region," the Navy official said.

"Following the construction, the Navy will be able to successfully conduct long-range operations to protect our commercial vessels in blue waters, including the Malacca Strait, as well as carry out full-scale operations around the Korean Peninsula," he said.

He emphasized that the base makes sense in terms of both military and commercial interests, as the nation`s economy heavily depends on trade, 96 percent of which is transported by sea.

Lingering Backlash

Despite the government's plan for the Jeju base, some local residents backed by progressive civic activists vehemently resist the naval base initiative.

Navy officials claim opponents are making the excessive demand that the central government offer a financial compensation package of about 480 billion won to the local community, in addition to the indemnity of 7.8 billion won already paid to Gangjeong residents for disrupting the fishery industry.

Opponents have argued that the construction doesn't necessarily translate to future economic growth, citing the case of Japan's Okinawa, where American troops are being stationed and the local economy is stagnant.

Some civic activists also raised suspicions of the project being related to the country's joining in the U.S.-led missile defense (MD) system, making Jeju vulnerable to international terrorism and becoming a potential military target for anti-U.S. militants.

The Navy admits that U.S. aircraft carriers can visit the port, but makes clear that it has no plan to join the MD system or make the port a permanent station for U.S. forces.

Supporters of the plan have insisted the naval port will bring economic benefits to local people by inducing a great amount of direct investment into the region from the construction of infrastructure for sailors.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr

Text fwd: Aegis Sea-Based Missile Shield: "Attack. Pursue. Vanquish"

* Text Fwd from Rick Rozoff
http://www.onmilwaukee.com/myOMC/blog/show/2806
OnMilwaukee, May 12, 2009
"If it flies, it dies:" Tour the USS Truxton, the Navy's newest ship
By Walter Rhett

-[T]he current guided missile destroyer Truxtun uses the AEGIS computer-commanded combat system and the SPY-1 radar to power and operate the most powerful force deterrent in the fleet.
The AEGIS combat system, at its heart, is a computer controlled combat and data system. It can simultaneously launch strikes against missiles or other targets in the air, and on land and sea, either surface or underwater.

-AEGIS is the most capable missile launch system the Navy has ever put to sea. In any weather, including full cyclones, AEGIS can attack multiple targets underwater, and from wave top to directly overhead, at all speeds from subsonic to supersonic. The ship hangars two attack helicopters, including one specifically designed for anti-submarine missions.

-[T]he USS Truxtun has 16 vertical missile launchers that fire 3 different types of missiles, including “smart” tomahawks. Its arsenal includes more than 50 Tomahawks. But its major weapon is the Standard missile (SM-3), a solid fuel anti-ballistic 3,000 pound missile armed with kinetic warheads that have the capacity to knock down satellites or enemy ballistic missiles at 300 miles....The ship carries the Sea Sparrow...a cache of Harpoons, surface-to-surface missiles. The ship also has a large arsenal of other specialized missiles and guns, including anti-submarine missiles.

-The AEGIS combat system is being used in the naval ships of Japan (4), Norway (5), Spain (5), and South Korea (2)....The US, the world leader by far, has 64 destroyers and 22 cruisers employing AEGIS.

The USS Truxtun steamed into the port of Charleston near the end of April, and when the ship opened its gangplank for public tours, I couldn't resist stepping aboard. The Truxtun is the US Navy's newest ship. Built in a Pascagoula, Mississippi shipyard building naval ships since 1938, the USS Truxtun is an AEGIS guided missile destroyer, the 25th of its generation built for the Navy by defense contractor Northrop-Grumman. When I saw the ship, it had not yet been commissioned.

The 521-foot Truxtun is the newest of a class of ships that are the largest and most powerful destroyers in the world. During its 2008 builder's trails, U.S. Navy Capt. Beth Dexter, The Navy's Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Gulf Coast, praised the Truxtun's performance: "She needs some polish - but make no mistake - I'd have no hesitation in taking this one to the fight!"

The Truxtun's motto? It's taken from words spoken by its namesake, Thomas Truxtun, who went to sea at 12 and commanded his own ship at 20, and later commanded the Navy's USS Constellation, a 3-mast, 38-gun frigate built in 1797 at Baltimore's Fells Point, Harris Creek Shipyard, from a controversial design by Quaker master ship builder, Joshua Humphreys. That ship, under Thomas Truxtun's command, was the first naval ship put to sea and became the first US Navy ship to defeat an enemy ship when, in 1799, the fastest warship in the French fleet was forced to strike colors, outmaneuvered and outfought by the Constellation's attack of hull shots and racking broadsides. Truxtun's quote: “Attack. Pursue. Vanquish.”

Today, the current guided missile destroyer Truxtun uses the AEGIS computer-commanded combat system and the SPY-1 radar to power and operate the most powerful force deterrent in the fleet.

The AEGIS combat system, at its heart, is a computer controlled combat and data system. It can simultaneously launch strikes against missiles or other targets in the air, and on land and sea, either surface or underwater.

The Truxtun can withstand and still operate successfully after taking a direct missile, but such a hit is unlikely with defensive measures that include construction angles for sleath design, radar absorbing construction materials, electronic counter measures, anti-submarine measures, and physical anti-aircraft chaff.

In fact, the AEGIS combat system is so advanced it pioneered a new approach to Navy ship building. The Truxtun's steel hull, mechanical, and electrical systems are designed and built to support its combat systems and mission. Its computer programs and back-ups, the ship's records of repair parts, maintenance, personnel, and tactical plans are linked and integrated to constantly determine the ship's multi-mission capacity, readiness and best options.

AEGIS is the most capable missile launch system the Navy has ever put to sea. In any weather, including full cyclones, AEGIS can attack multiple targets underwater, and from wave top to directly overhead, at all speeds from subsonic to supersonic. The ship hangars two attack helicopters, including one specifically designed for anti-submarine missions.

The eyes of the AEGIS system is the AN/SPY-1, a phased-array radar that can detect, identify, and track over 100 targets at the same time, until each is killed.

Phased construction of AEGIS destroyers allows for new technology or improvements in any aspect of operation to be built in immediately, in the shipyard. The Truxtun, however, ran into a myriad of obstacles that hindered and delayed its construction. Hurricane Katrina shut down the Pascagoula ship yard and made it impossible to receive supplies and parts for construction. The ship caught fire while under construction, and all of the fire-damaged areas had to be ripped out, repaired, and rebuilt. A union strike also held up work.

The AEGIS system and the class of destroyers it supports inherits the tradition of anti-missile defense developed by the Polaris submarines, originally based in Charleston. A Polaris submarine could stay at sea for up to 3 years, and its 16 missiles had a strike range of 2,500 miles.

Today, the USS Truxtun has 16 vertical missile launchers that fire 3 different types of missiles, including “smart” tomahawks. Its arsenal includes more than 50 Tomahawks. But its major weapon is the Standard missile (SM-3), a solid fuel anti-ballistic 3,000 pound missile armed with kinetic warheads that have the capacity to knock down satellites or enemy ballistic missiles at 300 miles, the distance from Charleston to Atlanta, Georgia. A kinetic warhead carries no explosives or nuclear charges. It destroys its target by the blunt force of its high speed impact, similar to a rock shattering a windshield, or a battering ram splintering a door.

The ship carries the Sea Sparrow, a missile used for ship self-defense and a cache of Harpoons, surface-to-surface missiles. The ship also has a large arsenal of other specialized missiles and guns, including anti-submarine missiles.
....
The AEGIS combat system is being used in the naval ships of Japan (4), Norway (5), Spain (5), and Korea (2). China has developed a similar system that appears to have size and launch advantages. The US, the world leader by far, has 64 destroyers and 22 cruisers employing AEGIS.
....

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