Taech'ŏng-I class, 680

ChieftainWarrior · July 20, 2024, 5:00pm

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Taech’ŏng-I class, 680

TL;DR: A North Korean gunboat derived from the Chinese Hainan-class (Type 037 submarine chaser), armed with a 100mm cannon, one dual 57mm cannon, one 25mm, two dual 14.5mm cannons, two RBU-1200s, and depth charges.

History
Following the signing of the Korean Armistice in 1953, the DPRK sought to re-equip its navy (the Korean People’s Navy, KPN or KPANF) and replace its dated inventory. They had primarily been equipped with basic Soviet torpedo boats, as well as a variety of civilian boats converted to military use.

The Pr. 201 (NATO codename: S.O.-1) was a Soviet submarine chaser first produced in 1955. 192 were built, and they were exported to a number of countries, including the DPRK in the early 1960s. The DPRK then built ~12 indigenous variants of the S.O.-1, outfitted with better weaponry but losing their ASW capabilities. The DPRK also obtained a number of Chinese Type 037 submarine chasers (NATO codename: Hainan) around the late 1960s – at least six entered service with their West Sea Fleet (all Chinese ships in KPANF service are stationed along the west coast).

Following the acquisition of these ships, North Korea began development of a new slightly lengthened and up-gunned derivative. This class is known as the Taech’ŏng-class, and has been described as a progressive development of the Type 037, retaining most of the original Chinese design but optimising them for operations along the Korean coast. The original weaponry was kept, but new weaponry was added, along with a lengthened hull, and design changes to the bridge and sensors.

The Taech’ŏng-class is split into two classes, Taech’ŏng-I and Taech’ŏng-II. The Taech’ŏng-II comprises fairly minor changes to Taech’ŏng-I, consisting of more modern weapons and sometimes altered bridges. The Taech’ŏng-II is much more rarely seen to the public, however, so information is limited. At least seven Taech’ŏng-I and at least five Taech’ŏng-II were built, and all appear to remain in service, acting as some of the KPANF’s most successful designs.

Multiple sub-variants of the Taech’ŏng-I (and -II) exist – differing primarily in their weaponry. The dual 57mm present at the fore of the Type 037 was replaced by either a turreted 85mm or 100mm cannon. In front of the bridge was a pair of dual 14.5mm cannons (or more recently, 14.5mm gatling guns). The RBU-1200s were reduced from four to two (and some carry none). The Taech’ŏng-II has similar weaponry, but many also carry two Soviet AK-230s, along with its associated radar system.

According to the CIA in 1987, the development of the Taech’ŏng-I is as follows:

Taech’ŏng-I units 1-4
- Armed with turreted 85mm, 2x RBU-1200 aft of foward gun, 2x twin 14.5mm guns, 1x 25mm 2M-3, 1x twin 57mm ZiF-31
- One unit was modified with the RBU-1200s forward of the main gun
Taech’ŏng-I units 5-7
- Armed with turreted 100mm, 2x RBU-1200 in front of forward gun
Taech’ŏng-I units 8-9
- Same weapons suite as 5-7, but with superstructure extended
- Note: Might be misidentification, and instead be Taech’ŏng-IIs

This suggestion focuses on Taech’ŏng-I number 680. This ship took part in the 1999 Battle of Yeongpyeong. The battle took place on the 15th June, but the events leading up to it started on the 6th June, beginning with KCNA (the North Korean news agency) proclaiming that the Northern Limit Line – the heavily disputed maritime boundary between the two states – had been violated by South Korean warships. The following day, three KPANF patrol boats crossed the NLL, just off Yeongpyeong. On the next day, 8th June, seven KPANF patrol boats crossed. South Korea sent some of their ships in response to both instances, no shots were fired on either day. On the 9th, a similar situation happened, and a KPANF boat collided with a ROKN boat, causing only minor damage.

Over the next few days, more and more ships were deployed on both sides and the ROKN started ‘bumping offensives’, deliberately ramming KPANF boats. The North responded with the same sort of tactic. The main battle on the 15th June saw multiple ships rammed, and a KPANF patrol boat opening fire after being rammed simultaneously by two ROKN ships. The ROKN ships responded, and over the next fourteen minutes, South Korean ships fired 4,584 rounds of ammunition.

North Korea faced the highest losses, with 17-30 killed, whereas South Korea faced no deaths. Taech’ŏng-I no. 680 took part in the skirmishes, and was likely present on the 15th June, where it was collided with. A ‘420-ton patrol boat’ was said to have been severely damaged, which likely refers to the Taech’ŏng-I. It doesn’t appear to have been photographed since, but was likely repaired and is now back in service – no sources indicate any Taech’ŏng’s have been taken out of service since their introduction.

Taech’ŏng-I no. 680 during the Battle of Yeongpyeong, 1999

Characteristics
Taech’ŏng-I no. 680 has a turreted 100mm gun mounted forward. The turret is semi-enclosed, with the rear being open for crew. The 100mm cannon is highly likely to be a derivative of the Soviet D-10, present on the T-54/T-55/Type 59, of which thousands are operated by the KPA. This cannon can fire APHE and HE rounds. The gun is manually loaded, and the turret is likely to be manually traversed.

100

100mm turret of an unknown Taech’ŏng-I

100mm

Left, shell being loaded into 100mm breech. 85mm turret in the background.
Right, crew member next to a 100mm round, just in front of an RBU-1200

Just in front of the bridge are two dual 14.5mm cannons. These were modernised on what is likely all the ships to rotary cannons at some unknown point, clearly some time after 1999 for this ship. These cannons are the standard 14.5mm KPV imported from the Soviet Union, and they fire three types of AP rounds and one HE round (in-game).

Dual 14.5mm set-up on an unknown Taech’ŏng-I

Behind the bridge, located on the small aft deckhouse, is a mount for the Soviet 2M-3 turret. This has two 25mm auto-cannons, which fire AP-T and FI-T rounds at 300 shots/minute.

Behind this on the main deck is a dual 57mm ZiF-31 mount. These are Soviet naval guns designed in the 50s – they were clip-fed, and could fire at 50 rounds/minute, with similar performance to the S-60 present on the ZSU-57-2, albeit without the AP rounds.

Side of an unknown 100mm-armed Taech’ŏng-I. This ship is equipped with the mounts for the rotary 14.5mm cannons, but is otherwise the same as no. 680.

Located at the very end of the ship are two racks for depth charges. These racks were mounted on all KPANF ships above a certain size built during the Cold War. Each rack carries 6 depth charges, for a total of 12.

Supplementing this ASW weaponry are two RBU-1200 rocket launchers mounted just in front of the 100mm turret mount, one on either side. These have five launcher pipes, and each fire 213mm rockets equipped with depth charges.

Conclusion
Taech’ŏng-I no. 680 represents one of the KPANF’s most successful classes of gunboat, as well as a historical ship taking part in one of the few naval battles fought between North and South since the (de facto) end of the war and deserves a place in either a future North Korean coastal fleet sub-tree for China, or a United Korean coastal fleet tree. This ship is armed with a variety of strong weapons that would place it solidly around a BR of 3.7-4.0.

Specifications

General
Displacement: 385-420t
Length: ~60m
Engine: 4x 2200 bhp, 8800 bhp total
Top Speed: ~30.5 knots (56.5km/h)
Crew: ~70-80
Armament:
Main Armament
1x 100mm
1x dual 57mm ZiF-31

AA Armament
1x 25mm 2M-3
2x dual 14.5mm cannons

ASW Armament
2x RBU-1200
12x depth charges
Sensors and Systems:
“Pot Head” (Reya) Search Radar