ROK's Hanwha has displayed its ballistic missile-armed KSS-III submarine, which is racing for Poland's Orka programme, during MSPO 2024.
The Polish Navy aims to obtain modern submarines of various types with the Orka programme. Hanwha, with the KSS-III design, is among the contenders for the attack submarine leg.
The ROK-based firm has brought a scaled model to the MSPO 2024 exhibition being organised in Poland between 3 and 6 September 2024.
KSS-III is fitted with an Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system and six VLS cells for Hyunmoo 4-4 short-range ballistic missiles with a range of up to 500 km in addition to torpedoes.
According to ESD's report, Hanwha has stated that the submarine can operate in the Baltic Sea, which is less shallow than the Yellow Sea where the submarine in use by the ROKN was tested.
The Polish Navy, alongside other branches, is pushing for an increase in firepower with new acquisitions. Another notable project in this regard is the Miecznik-class frigates based on the Dutch Arrowhead 140 design. The frigates will sport notable air defence prowess with 32 Mk41 VLS cells to carry MBDA's quad-pack CAMM/CAMM-ER and the dual-pack CAMM-MR air defence missiles with a range of 80 km.
