Taiwan Naval Fleet Adds Home-Grown Vessel
Taiwanese Navy formally took delivery Friday of a new locally designed supply vessel that it said will help enhance Taiwan's maritime combat capabilities.
In a ceremony hosted in the harbor in Kaohsiung, the vessel was formally turned over to the Navy from local shipbuilder CSBC Corp. Defense Minister Yen Ming co-hosted the delivery ceremony.
Christened as Panshih the locally made fast combat support ship will be used to transport fuel, ammunition and other supplies to support warships. Currently, the Navy only has one supply vessel in service, the Wuyi, says the Ministry of National Defense.
The Navy will now begin training a crew to familiarize it with the craft before formally putting the ship into service.
The vessel is designed as an AOE, in accordance with the U.S. Navy hull classification system, which means it is a logistics ship that will supply oil, ammunition and stores to other ships in a battle group. It has a range of 8,000 nautical miles, maximum speed of 22 knots and the capacity to carry a complement of 165. It cost NT$4.09 billion (US$130 million) to build, according to the Navy.
It was named after Panshih Mountain in Hualien County. The word "panshih" itself suggests a sturdy and unwavering foundation.
