Raytheon Company delivered the first Phalanx Close-In Weapon System to the Republic of Korea Navy for batch one of the new Ulsan-1 class FFX ship program.
The direct commercial sale calls for the Phalanx Block 1B system to be installed on the lead ship of the 2,300-ton frigate class this year; it represents Phalanx's introduction into the ROK fleet. Raytheon expects to sign a contract with South Korea for an additional five Phalanx systems in the near future.
"The Phalanx system is fully capable of defending against all types of air and surface threats in the naval environment," said Rick Nelson, vice president of Raytheon's Naval Weapons Systems product line. "Coupled with the reliability and availability of this world-class system, the South Korean fleet will have the best possible ship self-defense available."
Phalanx is a rapid-fire, computer-controlled radar and 20 mm gun system that automatically acquires, tracks and destroys enemy threats that have penetrated all other ship defense systems. More than 890 systems have been built and deployed in the navies of 25 nations.
The Republic of Korea's new FFX ship class will replace the current Ulsan and other smaller frigates. Ulsan-1 is designed for anti-ship, anti-submarine and anti-aircraft warfare.
