JS Hatakaze (DDG-171)

History

Japan's strategic placement (commercial and military) in the Pacific means that a strong naval presence has always been a requirement for the island nation. More recently, China's development in the region has drawn the attention of its neighbors, and now especially the resource-rich South China Sea islands.

As a result, the Japanese Navy has been relatively consistent in providing modern, capable combat solutions to repel belligerent actions by factions that threaten the well-being of its own or its regional allies.

The Flagwind class guided missile destroyers appeared in the early 1980s and formed a group of two-person surface ships. This line followed the Rikaze class destroyers, albeit an improved version, which itself was replaced by the 1990 Kongo-class launched on November 9, 1984.

Flag Wind officially entered service on March 27, 1986 and is currently building (2015) her home, Yokosuka Port. Her younger sister JDS Shimakaze (DDG-172) began service in March 1988 and was stationed at Maizuru.

The guided-missile destroyer is an evolution of the gun-carrying destroyer that culminated in the fighting of World War II (1939-1945). The ships themselves were the pinnacle of ship design, starting with the original "torpedo boat destroyers" designed to directly engage fast-moving torpedo boats to destroy capital ships.

As the name suggests, guided missile destroyers today are primarily missile-equipped vehicles, supported by an advanced search, pursuit and attack suite. Destroyers can engage enemies in the air, sea, or underwater as needed, and provide long-range firepower in a variety of ways.

The JDS Hatakaze has a displacement of 4,675 tons under standard load, a length of 492.1 feet, a beam of 53.9 feet, and a draft of 15.8 feet. Propulsion is via 2 x Kawasaki (Rolls-Royce Spey) SM1A GTs for cruising and 2 x Rolls-Royce Olympus GTs for high-speed sprint maneuvers. 72,000 hp on 2 axles under the stern. This arrangement is called COGAG - "mixed gas and gas".

The maximum achievable speed under ideal conditions is around 30 knots, which makes her relatively fast for her size.

Missile weapon support includes 8 x Harpoon anti-ship missiles, standard SM-1MR medium-range air-to-air missiles, Honeywell ASROC (anti-submarine rocket) launchers (this one is in an eight-round package/launcher). Conventional weapons include 2 x 5"/54 caliber Mark 42 deck guns and turrets, 2 x 20mm Mark 15 CIWS (Close-In Weapon System), and 2 x 68 Triple Torpedo Tubes.

Onboard sensors and processing provided by Hughes, Melco, Raytheon and Fujitsu equipment.

Their design profile is traditional with raised rings. There is a lounge area on the upper deck along the forecastle. Three weapon stations can be seen here - a SAM (Surface-to-Air Missile) launcher, a 5" turret mounted deck gun and ASROC launcher. The bridge superstructure is equipped with a lattice main mast, in which the SPS-52C air search radar system is installed.

A single funnel is located amidships. A shorter lattice mast is mounted above the rear superstructure and houses the OPS-11C air search system. Near the stern is another 5-inch gun installation, while the actual stern is a helicopter flight deck platform.

The flight deck can carry a medium helicopter - usually a Mitsubishi (Sikorsky) SH-60 Seahawk for anti-submarine warfare (ASW) missions.

Hatakaze has been active in the modern Japanese fleet since 2015.

Specification

Basic

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Performance

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Wing