Naval Warfare

PREMIUM: Indonesia receives first indigenously assembled submarine

17th March 2021 - 21:48 GMT | by Gordon Arthur in Christchurch

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KRI Alugoro, constructed for the Indonesian Navy, is the first submarine to be assembled in Southeast Asia.

The Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL) took receipt of its third Nagapasa-class submarine on 17 March. Significantly, based on the improved South Korean Chang Bogo class, the boat is the first to be assembled in Indonesia.

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) announced that KRI Alugoro (pennant number 405) was handed over at the PT PAL shipyard in Surabaya. While it may be the first submarine assembled in Southeast Asia, its completion lagged nearly three years behind the original schedule.

PT PAL launched the 61.2m-long Alugoro on 11 April 2019, after modules constructed in South Korea were shipped to PT PAL for local assembly. The South Korean design is itself based on the German Type 209/1200.

The first two Nagapasa-class submarines were built by DSME in South Korea, arriving in Indonesia on 28 August 2017 and 25 April 2018. Aselsan is supplying Zoka acoustic torpedo countermeasure jammers and decoys for this class via a 2019 contract.

Indonesian Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto attended the handover ceremony, and Park Doo-seon, VP of DSME, pointed out that his company ‘will support PT PAL shipyards with the ability to build submarines independently, and will establish partnerships with technology transfer and cooperation, which are the most important elements for the further submarine second project. I look forward to continuing’.

Park’s comment was significant since Indonesia seems to be backtracking on a contract signed with DSME on ...