Awaji-class minesweeper

The Awaji class is a class of minesweepers of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF).^[1]

JS Awaji and JS Hirado on 29 November 2013
Class overview
Name	Awaji
Builders	JMU, Yokohama
Preceded by	Yaeyama class
Built	2014–2019
Planned	4
On order	1
Completed	3
Active	3
General characteristics
Type	Minesweeper
Displacement	690 t (680 long tons) standard
Length	66.8 m (219 ft 2 in)
Beam	11 m (36 ft 1 in)
Draft	2.7 m (8 ft 10 in)
Depth	5.2 m (17 ft 1 in)
Propulsion	2 × diesel electric engines 2 × shafts
Speed	14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Complement	54
Sensors and processing systems	OPS-39H surface-search radar OQQ-10-1 sonar ZQS-4 sonar OZZ-2 UUV
Armament	1 × JM61R-MS 20 mm gun

Development

The Awaji-class is the successor to the Yaeyama class. The hulls are constructed of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) along the lines of the Enoshima class. Since many naval mines are of the magnetic type, it was necessary to avoid the use of metal in the hull of minesweepers that dispose of that type, and, previously, most minesweepers were constructed of wood. By making the Awaji-class FRP, the standard displacement of the ships is reduced by 30%, and the life of the hulls are extended, although - it has almost the same dimensions as the previous wooden Yaeyama-class. In the image diagram of the budget request for the 2013 government budget, stealth was improved, but, in the budget request for the following year, the Enoshima-class was enlarged.

This class of ships is one of the largest FRP ships in the world. Japan Marine United (JMU), which possesses the construction technology and equipment for large FRP vessels, handed over the third ship Etajima to the Maritime Self-Defense Force on 16 March 2021.^[2] The Ministry of Defense and the Maritime Self-Defense Force budgeted 12.6 Billion yen for the construction of the fourth Awaji-class ship, following Etajima, in the 2020 budget.

Ships in the class

Pennant no.	Name	Builders	Laid down	Launched	Commissioned	Home port
MSO-304	Awaji	Japan Marine United, Yokohama	27 February 2014	27 October 2015[3][4][5]	16 March 2017	Yokosuka
MSO-305	Hirado		10 April 2015	10 February 2017	16 March 2018	Yokosuka
MSO-306	Etajima		22 February 2018	12 December 2019[6]	16 March 2021[7]	Kure
MSO-307	Nōmi		19 May 2021	24 October 2023	12 March 2025[8]	Kure