Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) announced the delivery of the second AN/SPY-7(V1) S-band AESA radar suite to be integrated on JMSDF’s upcoming ASEV air defence destroyers.
Around eight months after the first delivery, the second AN/SPY-7(V1) suite for Japan’s ASEV destroyers was delivered, completing the order.
Japan is building two ASEV destroyers to boost its air defence coverage and counter the new hypersonic missile threat from China.
Compared to the previous AEGIS-equipped destroyers, ASEV brings improvements to sensors and firepower as the largest ship to be introduced to the JMSDF service.
AN/SPY-7(V1) S-band AESA radar using GaN T/R modules brings a significant increase in range and tracking performance compared to the radar used by other Japanese destroyers, AN/SPY-1D, known for its use on Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.
On the other hand, the ships will accommodate 128 Mk41 VLS cells, primarily to use SM-6 long-range air defence missiles, SM-3 Block IIA anti-ballistic missiles, and possibly RGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles. It is expected that ASEV will also be equipped with the Glide Phase Interceptor missile as an optimised anti-hypersonic missile under joint development with the US (Similar to SM-3 Block IIA’s model).
For ship-to-ship combat, ASEV will be the first ship to use Japan’s “Improved Type 12” anti-ship missile, bringing a range of 1000 km (Almost five times Type 12’s range) and new features such as a new seeker and evasive manoeuvres.
Author: Kaan Azman
Editor: Özgür Ekşi
