The Republic of Korea Navy Somali Sea Escort Task Group ( Korean: 대한민국 해군 소말리아 해역 호송전대), also known as "Cheonghae" Unit ( Korean: 청해부대,

Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, ...

: 淸海部隊) was established by the

Republic of Korea Navy The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN; ko, 대한민국 해군), also known as the ROK Navy or South Korean Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and amphibious operations. The ROK Navy inc ...

to protect civilian ships near the coast of

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constitut ...

under

Combined Task Force 151 Combined Task Force 151 (CTF-151) is a multinational naval task force, set up in 2009 as a response to piracy attacks in the Gulf of Aden and off the eastern coast of Somalia. Its mission is to disrupt piracy and armed robbery at sea and to enga ...

. The naval task force is named after the historical 9th-century Korean military base

Cheonghaejin Cheonghaejin (literally "Clear sea headquarters") was a major military headquarters and trading hub located on Wando island, South Jeolla province of South Korea, and established by Korean general Jang Bogo in 828 ACE during the Silla kingdom ...

. Deployed from

Jinhae Naval Base Commander Fleet Activities Chinhae ( ko, 진해 함대지원부대;
l

, the modern-day unit is responsible for safely escorting hundreds of commercial vessels and several rescues involving ships from

The Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the a ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

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 Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. In January 2011, commandos in the Cheonghae Unit successfully executed a highly publicized

rescue Rescue comprises responsive operations that usually involve the saving of life, or the urgent treatment of injuries after an accident or a dangerous situation. Tools used might include search and rescue dogs, mounted search and rescue ...

of a South Korean tanker, freeing crew members held hostage by Somali pirates.

Operational history

2009

was the first ship to be deployed as part of the unit to

Somali Somali may refer to: Horn of Africa * Somalis, an inhabitant or ethnicity associated with Greater Somali Region ** Proto-Somali, the ancestors of modern Somalis ** Somali culture ** Somali cuisine ** Somali language, a Cushitic language ** Somali ...

waters on March 13, 2009. On April 17, it deterred pirates from boarding the cargo vessel ''Puma'', which was registered in

. On May 4, the ''Munmu the Great'' responded to a distress call by the

n merchant vessel ''Dabaksol''. A

Westland Lynx The Westland Lynx is a British multi-purpose twin-engined military helicopter designed and built by Westland Helicopters at its factory in Yeovil. Originally intended as a utility craft for both civil and naval usage, military interest led t ...

military helicopter was launched to protect the ''Dabaksol'' until the pirates had fled. The North Korean sailors thanked the members of the unit before proceeding to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. A member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Republic of Korea stated, "This is the first time that the South Korean navy has rescued a North Korean cargo ship from a pirate’s attack. According to the international law of the sea, we should help all vessel regardless of their nationality." ROKS ''Dae Joyeong'' was dispatched in July 2009 to relieve the ''Munmu the Great'', and rescued four civilian vessels. In August, the ''Dae Joyeong'' raided a pirate vessel that had been pursuing the Bahamian container ship ''Notos Scan''. In September, it freed the Cypriot commercial vessel ''Alexandria'', along with five

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the northeast and ...

i crew members who were being held by pirates. ROKS ''Yi Sun-shin'' was deployed in November 2009 to become the third ship of the unit. It defeated pirates twice while escorting 460 vessels during its tour of duty.

2010

ROKS Kang Gamchan steams by a line of ROK Navy ships during the International Fleet Review

On April 4, 2010, Somali pirates took over the South Korean

supertanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined ...

'' Samho Dream'' along with its 24 crew members, including five Koreans and nineteen Filipinos. When the ''Yi Sun-shin'' pursued the hijacked vessel, the pirates threatened to kill the tanker crew. ROKS ''Kang Gamchan'' relieved the ''Yi Sun-shin'' in May 2010, and transported injured crew members from a Bahamian drilling ship to a hospital later that month. In August, the ''Kang Gamchan'' also provided medical assistance to the crew of a ship registered in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

. ROKS ''Wang Geon'' was deployed later that year to become the fifth ship of the unit. Among the 432 vessels it escorted was the '' Samho Dream'', which had finally been released by pirates in November for a record ransom payment of $9.5 million.

2011 rescue operation

On January 21, 2011, the Cheonghae Unit rescued the crew of the '' Samho Jewelry'', a chemical tanker held hostage by Somali pirates; 8 pirates were killed, and 5 were captured. The captain of the tanker was wounded during the operation, but the rest of the crew members were unhurt.

2021 covid-19 infections

On 19 July, 2021, it is reported that 247 out of 301 crew members of the 34th contingent of the Cheonghae Unit on the ''Munmu the Great'' was tested positive for the

covid-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

. Two Korean Air Force KC-330 departed with 200 replacement members to transport the 301 entire crew members back to South Korea. After returning to South Korea, it is revealed that 270 crew members are tested positive.

Unit rotation

References

External links

{{commons category, Cheonghae Unit
Cheonghae Unit
at KBS World
Cheonghae Unit Dispatched to Chase Somali Pirates
at

Arirang News Arirang International Broadcasting is a South Korean-based broadcasting company operated by the International Broadcasting Exchange Foundation. It began as a cable TV service in South Korea on February 3, 1997, and opened Korea's first overseas ...

Military units and formations established in 2009 Overseas deployments of South Korea armed forces Counterterrorist organizations Military units and formations of South Korea Republic of Korea Navy Piracy in Somalia Anti-piracy Somalia–South Korea relations