Category Archives: ASCM

“Pakistan’s New OPV – PNS Yarmook – Is At NAVDEX 2023” –Naval News

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Sister ship: GULF OF OMAN (Nov. 11, 2021) Pakistani corvette PNS Tabuk sails alongside amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) during a passing exercise in the Gulf of Oman, Nov. 11, 2021. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Sang Kim)

Naval News reports on a tour of a recently completed Damen designed Offshore Patrol Vessel. The vessel itself, PNS Yarmook (271), is a very typical modern OPV. What is not typical is the way it is being armed.

A medium caliber gun (57-76mm) and a pair of auto-cannon (20-30mm) seems to be the norm. Instead, it is to be a 30 mm Aselsan SMASH remote weapon station, two Aselsan STAMP remote weapon systems, (presumably with .50 cal. machine guns) and a Phalanx Block 1B close-in weapon system, and eight Harbah sub-sonic, anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCM) with land attack capability. This missile, at 1350 kg, is about twice as large as Harpoon (1523 lbs / 691 kg) and 50 kg or 110 pounds heavier than the Tomahawk. It is more than three times larger than Naval Strike Missile.

Pakistan is building another, slightly larger class of OPVs. Presumably, they will also be armed with ASCM. These, like the Yarmook class, are being built by the Damen yard in Galati, Romania.

“Ukraine Claims Strike on Russian Naval Tug with Harpoon Missiles Supplied By West” –gCaptain

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I have seen several reports that Ukraine claims to have sunk a Russian vessel here and here. and here, using Harpoon missiles transferred from Denmark.

The tugboat, identified as the Vasiliy Bekh by Odesa region’s governor, had been transporting soldiers, weapons and ammunition to the Russian-occupied Zmiinyi (Snake) Island in the Black Sea, the Ukrainian navy said.

Reportedly the vessel had been equipped with a TOR AAW missile system. that theoretically could have defended the vessel from an ASCM attack.

According to Wikipedia, Zmiinyi (Snake) Island is well within Harpoon range of the Ukrainian coast.

The nearest coastal location to the island is Kubanskyi Island on the Ukrainian part of the Danube Delta, located 35 km (22 mi) away between the Bystroe Channel and Skhidnyi Channel…The closest Ukrainian city is Vylkove, 50 km (31 mi); however, there also is a port Ust-Dunaisk, 44 km (27 mi) away from the island.

“Taiwan’s Coast Guard Tests Its Ability To Turn Cutters Into Ship Killers” –The Drive

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Taiwan Coast Guard Vessel Anping firing missile

The Drive/The War-Zone reports,

During the test conducted on May 23, officials said that the HF-2 missiles were launched from the cutter off the coast of the Jiupeng Base and successfully hit a target ship that was located 62 miles off the coast of Lanyu, near Orchid Island. According to Taiwan’s Liberty Times Net reporter Zheng Jingyi, “this live ammunition firing specifically verifies the integration of the naval forces and sea cruisers under the ‘peace-to-war conversion.’”

This was a test and the missile launch equipment was removed immediately after the test. The launch and control was conducted by Taiwanese Navy personnel, temporarily assigned for the test.

Since the cutters are a version of a missile equipped Taiwanese Navy corvette, there would seem little reason to believe the test would not have been successful.

Reportedly twelve corvettes and twelve cutters are planned, but the prototype Navy corvette was commissioned in 2014, the second not until 2021, and none since. On the other hand four of the cutters have entered service beginning 2020 with two more under construction.

The normal armament of these and other Taiwanese cutters includes an unusual 42 round, remote controlled, “Zhenhai” 70mm/2.75″ rocket launcher. It is unclear if these rockets have a guidance system like APKWS. Photos below from Wikipedia.

Taiwan Anping-class offshore patrol vessel onboard multi-barrel Zhenhai rocket system

Anping-class offshore patrol vessel onboard 42-barrel Zhenhai rocket system, looking forward