The Diplomat:
Japanese ship maker Japan Marine United (JMU) Corporation launched the first of two Improved Atago-class (aka 27DD- or 27DDG-class) guided missile destroyers on order for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) at its facility in Yokohama on July 30, the Japanese Ministry of Defense (MoD) said in a statement.
The new and improved 8,200-ton Atago-class destroyer, christened Maya (PN 179), will be the seventh JMSDF surface warship to be equipped with the Aegis combat system, an automated command-and-control (C2) and weapons control system that enables improved Atago-class destroyers to attack and defend against land targets, submarines, surface warships, as well as ballistic and cruise missiles.
The future JS Maya, which cost about $1.5 billion to build, will be fitted with the Aegis Baseline J7 combat system and the Northrop Grumman AN/SPQ-9B radar system capable of detecting and tracking low-flying, supersonic, low observable anti-ship missiles. The Aegis Baseline J7 combat system is the Japanese equivalent to the U.S. Navy’s Baseline 9/BMD 5.1 standard Aegis combat system.
