The ''Asahi'' class of destroyers of the

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...

is optimized for undersea warfare. The class was initially designated "25DD", referring to a date on the

Japanese calendar Japanese calendar types have included a range of official and unofficial systems. At present, Japan uses the Gregorian calendar together with year designations stating the year of the reign of the current Emperor. The written form starts with t ...

, specifically the 25th fiscal year of the Heisei period (2013). The lead ship, ''Asahi'', is the third ship to hold the name after the ''Asahi''-class destroyer escort lent from the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in 1955, and the Imperial Japanese battleship. The second ship of the class, ''Shiranui'', is the third ship to hold the name after the ''Murakumo'' and ''Kagerō''-class destroyers.

Development

The procurement of the destroyer began in 2013 in response to the reduction in the number of destroyers (namely the ) within the JMSDF. The two major characteristics of this destroyer is its bigger emphasis on

anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...

and the adoption of the COGLAG (combined gas turbine electric and gas turbine: a modification of the

combined gas and gas Combined gas turbine and gas turbine (COGAG) is a type of propulsion system for ships using two gas turbines connected to a single propeller shaft. A gearbox and clutches allow either of the turbines to drive the shaft or both of them combined. ...

propulsion system employing electric propulsion system for low-speed cruising) propulsion system. A second destroyer was procured a year later.

Design

The ''Asahi'' class is based on the existing to reduce acquisition cost and allow future development and growth. Unlike the ''Akizuki'' class (which focuses on

anti-aircraft warfare Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based ...

) the ''Asahi'' class focuses on anti-submarine warfare.

Features

The ''Asahi'' class is the first Japanese warship to be equipped with a COGLAG propulsion system. This allows the destroyer to be more fuel efficient than previous warships. Another unique feature about this destroyer is the usage of a

GaN The word Gan or the initials GAN may refer to: Places *Gan, a component of Hebrew placenames literally meaning "garden" China * Gan River (Jiangxi) * Gan River (Inner Mongolia), * Gan County, in Jiangxi province * Gansu, abbreviated ''Gā ...

AESA Aesa or Aisa ( grc, Αἶσα) was a town of ancient Macedonia. Aesa belonged to the Delian League since it appears on a tribute list to Athens in 434/3 BCE. The editors of the Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World identify Aesa wi ...

(gallium nitride - active electronically scanned array) Multifunction Radar. The ''Asahi'' class is the second Japanese class of warship to be outfitted with this technology (the ''Akizuki'' class was the first). The destroyer's radar is based on the FCS-3A radar used for the ''Akizuki'' class and uses gallium nitride to improve performance. In radar technology, gallium nitride offers a number of advantages over the traditionally used gallium arsenide (GaA). These advantages include higher power density, efficiency, thermal spreading and frequency coverage. This in turn allows the GaN chip to be smaller than their GaA counterpart, thus reducing cost and increasing overall cost effectiveness.

Ships in the class

References

{{Combatant ship classes of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force