Japan Plans Giant Missile Defense Ships, Its Largest Post-WWII Surface Combatants

September 12, 2022

The Drive:

The Japan Ministry of Defense has provided more details of its plans to build two huge new warships, part of a wider missile defense initiative that’s superseded an earlier proposal to install the land-based Aegis Ashore system in Japan. The as-yet-unnamed missile defense ships are expected to have a standard displacement of around 20,000 tons — more than twice as much as the current Aegis-equipped Maya class destroyers — making them potentially the biggest Japanese surface combatants since World War II.

In its budget request for Fiscal Year 2023, the Japan Ministry of Defense outlined its proposal for the two new warships, to be funded from an overall requirement of around $39.7 billion, compared with $38.4 billion for FY2022. Unconfirmed reports in the Japanese media suggest that the two new ships could come with a price tag of $7.1 billion, considerably more than the roughly $4.3 billion that the two Aegis Ashore systems were expected to cost. Overall, the Japanese defense budget has been steadily growing in recent years, reflecting the growing importance assigned to the country’s military, and the fast-developing threats emanating from both North Korea and China. 

According to figures published by The Nikkei, the warships are expected to have a length of around 690 feet and a beam of around 130 feet. This compares to a length of just over 557 feet and a width of around 73 feet for the Maya class, the latest Aegis destroyers to enter service with the JMSDF. These warships have a standard displacement of around 10,250 tons.

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Curtis Stiles - Chief of Staff