Japan will have new advance destroyer for its Navy named Maya.The destroyer is the first
of two so-called 27DDG class ships.
On July 30, 2018, Maya was put to water during a ceremony held in Japan Marine United’s,
(JMU) shipyard at Isogo Ward which is near Tokyo, the capital of Japan.
Major dignitaries along with Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera were in attendance.
In this video, Defense Updates analyzes why Japan’s new Maya destroyer will help it
tackle Chinese threat?
Lets get started.
Japan and China have dispute regarding the ownership of certain islands.
Japan is also concerned about long term ambition of China which has been expanding its military rapidly.
China has recently installed new anti-aircraft and anti-ship defenses on some of its man-made
outposts in the South China Sea.
China claims almost all of the South China Sea, sweeping aside claims from Malaysia,
Vietnam, Brunei, Taiwan, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Non-claimants like USA, India, Australia & Japan want the South China Sea to remain as international
waters with freedom of navigation, whereas China want to control this major trade way
.It is a very important sea route with 5 trillion dollar in trade, 1/2 of global merchant shipping
and 1/2 of world’s oil shipment pass through it.
The Japanese Defense Ministry disclosed plans for 27DDG class in August 2015.
Maya is set to enter service in 2020, and the second yet unnamed sister ship is planned
for commissioning in 2021.
The 27DDGs class warships are derived from the Atagos but are much bigger than their
predecessor.
27DDGs class displace approximately 8,200 tons when compared to its predecessors which
have a displacement of around 7,700 tons.
Views may note that Atagos are themselves derived from Kongō-class, which are derivatives
of the U.S. Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class
Maya has 96 Mk 41 Vertical Launch System cells that can accommodate the RIM-66 Standard Missile-2
(SM 2) surface-to-air missiles , RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM), and the RIM-161
Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) anti-ballistic interceptor missile.
Interestingly each one of the cells can carry 4 quad-packed ESSMs, dramatic increasing the
numbers that can be accommodated.
Also, Maya will be able to accommodate SM-3 Block II that is being jointly developed by
the United States and Japan.
SM-3 Block II is a more capable anti-ballistic missile weapon.
In coming days these warships may also integrate the RIM-174 Standard Missile-6 (SM-6).
SM 6 not only has the ability intercept ballistic missiles during the terminal stage but has
recently demonstrated their ability to be used for land-attack roles.
A mix of SM-2, SM-3, and SM-6 missiles would add a lot of versatility to Japan’s Aegis
enabled destroyers.
In 2015, Japan Marine United indicated that the warship could get solid-state laser close-in
defense systems or even an electromagnetic railgun in future.
In recent times Japan has been moving toward a more active foreign policy and may soon
amend its pacifist constitution.
Article 9 of the constitution renounces the right to war and prohibits land, sea and air forces.
The ambiguous constitutional status of the Self-Defense Forces has resulted in debates
over limits on their role.
A study conducted by Deloitte has found that Japan’s defense posture is least aggressive
among 18 Asia-Pacific nations it.
This study took into consideration 7 important factors like military budget allocation.
But this could change as Japan’s public get more concerned about China’s intentions.
Tokyo has now increasingly joining the other members of the international community in
pushing back China.
The 27DDGs signals a shift in role for Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.
With the addition of these 2 warships, to the already available 2 Atagos and the 4 Kongo,
Japan will have a total of 8 SM-3 Block II-capable Aegis-equipped ships.
This will enable Japanese Force to keep a constant vigil and maintain a more persistent
missile defense posture from sea.
The 27DDGs will especially be important as they may be integrated into a battle group
with Izumo-class carriers when Izumo and Kaga are modified from being a helicopter carrier
to a short take-off vertical-landing aircraft carriers carrying F 35Bs.