Tokyo this week commissioned the first in a new class of 'helicopter-carrying destroyers' that will greatly increase the range and power of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force. The new 1,3950 ton ship, JS Hyuga, has a 195-meter full-length flight deck and can carry up to 11 helicopters.
The 'helicopter-carrying destroyer' is a name that allows the JMSDF to stretch the country's declared pacifist position. Tokyo takes the position that Japan cannot possess an offensive aircraft carrier due to the country's constitution.
According to the JMSDF, the Hyuga class is not an aircraft carrier although analysts speculate that the size of the ships would mean that they potentially could be used with some types of aircraft.
At a ceremony at IHI Marine United's shipyard in Yokohama, Parliamentary Defence Secretary Ryota Takeda handed the JMSDF's rising sun ensign to the Captain Katsunori Yamada, to mark the comissioning of the vessel. 'I recognize that people's expectations for the Hyuga are high,' Capt Yamada told reporters after the event.
The ship then headed to the JMSDF base in Yokosuka where it will become the flagship for the force's 1st Escort Flotilla. As well as its helicopter capability the new Hyuga class also has a sophisticated command, control and communications system allowing it to act as a task force command centre.
The second Hyuga class destroyer is to be commissioned in March 2011.
(www.asianmilitaryreview.com)
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