Date Posted: 18-Sep-2024
Author: Ridzwan Rahmat, Singapore
Key points
- North Korea has made progress in its effort to redevelop Munchon Naval Base
- Redevelopment will provide the Korean People's Navy with another facility from which it can project the country's submarines and larger surface combatants into the Sea of Japan (East Sea)
Maxar Technologies imagery showing expansion of the North Korean naval base near Munchon. Reclaimed land facilitates the construction of new piers and a rail extension proceeds southwest through a tunnel towards Munchon. (Maxar Technologies/Janes)
The Korean People's Navy (KPN) has made more progress in its effort to transform Munchon Naval Base from a facility that was primarily used by its special forces units into an installation that can soon host the country's submarines and large warships.
Munchon Naval Base has direct access to the Sea of Japan (East Sea) and is located about 20 km north of the port city of Wonsan.
Commercially available satellite images indicate that the facility was a significant base for the KPN's fleet of Kongbang II and Kongbang III classes of hovercraft.
These vessels were regularly spotted along the coast of Munchon Naval Base in satellite images that were captured between 2003 and 2015.
Kongbang classes
North Korea is believed to operate a fleet of about 57 Kongbang II-class and 78 Kongbang III-class hovercraft. The former has an overall length of about 21 m while the latter has an overall length of about 18 m.
Both classes are derived from the older Kongbang I class, which is in turn based on a commercial hovercraft design by the now defunct British Hovercraft Corporation. North Korea operates just one Kongbang I-class vessel.
Powered by twin propellers, the Kongbang II-class hovercraft can attain a top speed of 50 kt and can carry up to 50 special forces troops for insertion missions.
Meanwhile, the Kongbang-III-class vessels are powered by a single propeller and can attain a top speed of 40 kt while carrying up to 40 special forces personnel for similar missions.
Frequent sightings of the Kongbang II and Kongbang III classes at Munchon Naval Base between 2003 and 2015 suggest that the facility was either a base or a major staging area for North Korea's special forces.
Redevelopment
Munchon Naval Base's redevelopments appear to have started in 2015 but work only began in earnest from around mid-2017 when large sections of its coastal areas were reclaimed.
As a result of these reclamations, Munchon Naval Base has effectively gained approximately 2 km in hardened shoreline across its coast.
The base also appears to have been demarcated into two distinct segments – one for larger vessels located at the eastern end of the base, while the other appears to have been built for smaller ships and submarines located at the western end.
Satellite images indicate that North Korea has built seven new piers across the hardened coastline in the eastern segment of Munchon Naval Base and these structures project out into Wonsan Bay in a south-easterly direction.
One of these piers is nearly 300 m long, with another recorded at a length of 200 m. The remaining five piers at this segment each have a length of about 150 m, all of which can easily accommodate the larger surface combatants such as the KPN's Najin-class frigates.
Besides these new piers, North Korea appears to be constructing either slipways or jetties along the new coastline, and has extended a railway line such that it can better serve the Munchon Naval Base.
A report published by Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on 8 September indicates that the country's leader, Kim Jong-un, had recently visited the Munchon Naval Base and described its ongoing redevelopment as ‘a pressing task'.
This is due to the fact that the KPN would “soon be in possession of new large surface warships and submarines that cannot be moored at the country's existing naval facilities”, the KCNA report stated.
A TV screen at a railway station in Seoul shows an image of the launch of North Korea's ‘new tactical nuclear attack submarine', which could be one of the vessels that will be homeported at Munchon Naval Base. (Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
During the visit, Kim also explained the geostrategic importance of the site occupied by Munchon Naval Base, though the report gave no further details of what he said.
Against this background, the North Korean leader called for work on Munchon Naval Base to be completed quickly such that it will be a symbol of North Korea's naval capabilities. Kim also called for the base to be installed with air and coastal defence systems, the report added.
