On December 8, 2025, the South Korean Navy received four new Chamsuri Batch II patrol boats, each armed with a 130 mm guided rocket system, enhancing coastal defense and rapid-response capabilities in tense maritime regions.
On December 8, 2025, the South Korean Navy officially commissioned four next-generation Chamsuri Batch-II patrol boats at a ceremony held at HJ Heavy Industries in Busan. Each vessel is equipped with a 130 mm guided rocket launcher, representing a major step in modernizing the Navy’s coastal defense capabilities. These vessels feature faster acceleration, improved situational awareness, and enhanced lethality against hostile small craft in contested littoral zones. Acceptance trials will continue into early 2026, while the ships begin replacing older Chamsuri-class boats that have patrolled Korean waters for over 30 years.
The 230-ton, 45-meter-long Chamsuri Batch-II vessels are designed for rapid-response operations in confined maritime environments. Their compact hulls combine speed, maneuverability, and firepower, optimized for deterrence and interdiction missions. Their deployment highlights Seoul’s strategic shift toward distributed, high-readiness naval assets capable of countering asymmetric threats such as infiltration attempts, small boat swarm attacks, and low-visibility incursions.
Advanced Combat Systems and Weaponry
The Batch-II variant integrates a next-generation combat management system linked to core weapon platforms, including the 130 mm guided rocket system, a 76 mm naval gun, and a 12.7 mm remote-controlled weapon station. This networked fire control system enables faster target acquisition, real-time threat assessment, and coordinated precision strikes from a unified interface.
The 130 mm guided rocket system is tailored for close-inshore engagement, featuring improved guidance and rapid salvo capability for area denial against fast-moving, low-signature surface threats. The 76 mm gun provides versatile firepower with high-elevation tracking for both surface and limited aerial targets. Enhanced sensors, including electro-optical systems and modern surface-search radar, improve detection in the complex coastal environments of the Korean Peninsula.
Electronic Warfare and Survivability
Batch-II patrol boats feature advanced electronic warfare capabilities, including hardened communications resistant to jamming and GPS anti-jamming systems. Planned upgrades include soft-kill decoy systems to mislead incoming guided munitions, increasing survivability in an increasingly contested electronic battlespace.
Strategic Role and Deployment
The Batch-II program closes a critical operational gap, replacing the older 150-ton Chamsuri-class fast patrol boats. These new vessels serve as rapid interceptors and surveillance nodes in coordination with larger platforms such as Incheon-class frigates and maritime patrol aircraft, supporting a layered maritime defense doctrine.
With rising tensions in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea, these small, capable ships reflect a doctrinal evolution toward mobility, network-centric warfare, and coastal dominance. The vessels are optimized for Korea’s dense maritime borders, where rapid engagement can be decisive for deterrence.
Chamsuri-231, 232, 233, and 235 will undergo sea trials and combat system integration before full delivery to the Navy between August and November 2026. Once operational, they will patrol disputed waters, monitor irregular vessel activity, and respond quickly to surface provocations or infiltration attempts.
The PKMR Batch-II program underscores South Korea’s commitment to technological superiority and operational readiness, ensuring that even its smallest naval assets remain strategically relevant in a complex maritime security environment.
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