''Go Jun Bong''-class tank landing ship (

Hangul The Korean alphabet is the modern writing system for the Korean language. In North Korea, the alphabet is known as (), and in South Korea, it is known as (). The letters for the five basic consonants reflect the shape of the speech organs ...

: 고준봉급 전차상륙함,

Hanja Hanja (; ), alternatively spelled Hancha, are Chinese characters used to write the Korean language. After characters were introduced to Korea to write Literary Chinese, they were adapted to write Korean as early as the Gojoseon period. () ...

: 孤準峰級戰車上陸艦) is an amphibious landing ship class of the

Republic of Korea Navy The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN; ), also known as the ROK Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and Amphibious warfare, amphibious operations. The South ...

Development

In the late 1980s the

decided to gradually replace its aging fleet of WW2 era ''LST-542''-class tank landing ships (renamed ''Un Bong'' class) bought from the US Navy in 1958. A three phase plan was laid out to develop new landing ships to meet the demands of modern amphibious and transport operations. The first phase was designated as the LST-I project, and development and design started in 1987 by Korea Tacoma, currently

Hanjin Heavy Industries HJ Shipbuilding & Construction Company, Ltd. (), formerly Korea Shipbuilding & Engineering Corporation () and Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co. Ltd. (), is a South Korean-based multinational shipbuilding company, founded in 1937 as ...

. After 4 years of development, the lead ship ''Go Jun Bong'' (LST-681) was launched in 1991. Three more ships followed and all four ships were commissioned by 1998. The second phase, or LST-II, was originally planned to import four ''Newport''-class tank landing ships, but after being postponed due to budget issues, it was changed in favor for domestic built 4500 ton LPDs to be commissioned by 2013-2016.Chosun Daily - 4천500t급 차기상륙함 윤곽 드러나 10/9/2007
These ships will ultimately replace the ''Un Bong'' class and ''Go Jun Bong''-class tank landing ships. LST-III was to build two mid-size helicopter amphibious landing ships, and designing started in 1997. In 2001 it was renamed as the LPX project and a total of two 14,300 ton ships were ordered for the

. On July 3, 2007 the lead ship ''Dokdo'' was commissioned.

Design

''Go Jun Bong''-class tank landing ship is based on the design of the ''LST-542'' class, and thus its exterior is very similar to the ''Un Bong'' class. The ship is designed to land multiple personnel, tanks and equipment simultaneously with doors and ramps placed on both the stern and bow of the ship, unlike the ''Un Bong'' class which only has doors on the bow. It is also equipped with a turn table, saving time when loading or landing vehicles. There is also a ramp for moving trucks up to the deck, and multiple elevators for rapid cargo loading.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Go Jun Bong class tank landing ship Landing craft Amphibious warfare vessel classes Amphibious warfare vessels of the Republic of Korea Navy