The ''Tsurugi'' class ( ja, つるぎ型巡視船) is a class of small
patrol vessel
A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and they ...
of the
Japan Coast Guard
The is the coast guard of Japan.
The Japan Coast Guard consists of about 13,700 personnel and is responsible for the protection of the coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Th ...
(JCG). The development of this class was one of the earliest attempts of the JCG to deal with spy boats from
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
. In March 1999, the JCG tried to intercept vessels of unknown nationality suspected to be North Korean, but the unknown vessels were too fast, and 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) ...
had to be called to intercept the unknown vessels. As a consequence of this failure, JCG realized their need for high speed interceptors.
The ''Tsurugi'' class is referred to as . Planned as the top-tier of JCG intercept spy boats, this class features very high speed and accurate firepower. Its weaponry includes a
JM61 20 mm Gatling gun, and a Remote Firing System consisting of a
remote weapon system
A remote controlled weapon station (RCWS), or remote weapon station (RWS), also known as a remote weapon system (RWS), is a remotely operated weaponized system often equipped with fire-control system for light and medium-caliber weapons which can ...
with a laser-optical
fire-control system
A fire-control system (FCS) is a number of components working together, usually a gun data computer, a director, and radar, which is designed to assist a ranged weapon system to target, track, and hit a target. It performs the same task as a ...
.
In the
Battle of Amami-Ōshima
The , was a six-hour confrontation between the Japan Coast Guard and an armed North Korean vessel on 22 December 2001, taking place near the Japanese island of Amami Ōshima, in the East China Sea. The encounter ended in the sinking of the North ...
, the combination of the 20 mm gun with the RFS proved its worth, but it became clear that its effective range was insufficient against weapons on board the North Korean spy boats such as
9K38 Igla
The 9K38 Igla (russian: Игла́, "needle", NATO reporting name SA-18 Grouse) is a Russian/Soviet man-portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM) system. A simplified, earlier version is known as the 9K310 Igla-1 (NATO: SA-16 Gi ...
MANPADS
Man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS or MPADS) are portable surface-to-air missiles. They are guided weapons and are a threat to low-flying aircraft, especially helicopters.
Overview
MANPADS were developed in the 1950s to provide military ...
and
B-10 recoilless rifle
The B-10 recoilless rifle (''Bezotkatnojie orudie-10'', known as the RG82 in East Germany) is a Soviet 82 mm smoothbore recoilless gun. It could be carried on the rear of a BTR-50 armoured personnel carrier. It was a development of the earli ...
. In response, the JCG intends to organize mobile flotillas combining ''Tsurugi''-class ships with vessels of the and es, which have
Bofors 40 mm Bofors 40 mm gun is a name or designation given to two models of 40 mm calibre anti-aircraft guns designed and developed by the Swedish company Bofors:
*Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun - developed in the 1930s, widely used in World War II and into the 1990s
...
L/70
autocannon
An autocannon, automatic cannon or machine cannon is a fully automatic gun that is capable of rapid-firing large-caliber ( or more) armour-piercing, explosive or incendiary shells, as opposed to the smaller-caliber kinetic projectiles (bull ...
s.
[Shigehiro Sakamoto 2008, p135.]
Ships in the class
See also
*
List of Japan Coast Guard vessels and aircraft
List of Japan Coast Guard vessels and aircraft.
Fleet
PLH (Patrol Vessel Large With Helicopter)
* 2 Helicopter class
** ''Shunkō'' class ''(ja)''
**
**
* 1 Helicopter class
** ''Reimei'' class (Modified ''Shikishima'' class)
**
*** ''Ryū ...
References
Future reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsurugi Class Patrol Vessel
Patrol vessels of the Japan Coast Guard
Patrol boat classes