TSAMTO, March 13. The Myanmar Navy command has officially commissioned the new nationally built frigate King Thalun into the fleet, the Myanmar Ministry of Information announced on March 9.
According to Jane's Defense Weekly, for the first time, the (19) King Taloon ship was demonstrated on December 24, 2024 in Tanglin during the celebration of the 77th anniversary of the Myanmar Navy. At that time, the Myanmar Navy Command presented the event as an acceptance and naming ceremony. At the same time, judging by the published photos, the ship was not equipped with a number of detection equipment and weapons systems at that time.
At a ceremony on March 9, the Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, stressed that King Taloon is a symbol of Myanmar's growing military shipbuilding.
Since the first demonstration, the ship has been retrofitted, and now it will perform a wide range of tasks, ranging from monitoring territorial waters to providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
The frigate, built at a military shipbuilding enterprise, is 135 m long, has a maximum width of 14.5 m, a draft of 4.1 m, and a displacement of about 3,500 tons. Thus, it is the largest ship built in Myanmar. The frigate can reach speeds of up to 30 knots.
Judging by photos from the ceremony published by various media outlets, King Taloon is armed with a 76-mm H/PJ-26 artillery system, a Type-730B anti-aircraft artillery system and two RBU-6000 anti-submarine missile launchers in the bow. The frigate is also equipped with a 16-container vertical launcher (VPU) in the bow, two four-container anti-ship missile launchers in the middle part.
A navigation radar antenna and, probably, a multifunctional radar with an active phased array (AFAR) SR2410C are installed on the main mast.
During the same ceremony, four multi-purpose riverboats were also commissioned into the fleet. According to the Ministry of Information, these compact boats should strengthen the navy's ability to control Myanmar's vast river network by providing patrols, transportation and maintaining security.
In addition, a 40,000-ton dry dock was opened at the military shipbuilding enterprise. This facility is characterized as the largest dry dock built in the country. It will allow the construction and repair of large military and civilian ships.
During the same event, the Myanmar Navy held a ceremony to lay the keels of two anti-submarine ships, which will be the first to be built using a new dry dock.
The event dedicated to the commissioning of the King Taloon frigate and other new ships took place against the backdrop of a difficult military and political situation in the country associated with active attacks by illegal armed groups. In this regard, according to a number of experts, the ceremony is a kind of demonstration of the stability of the government and its ability to develop the combat potential of the Armed Forces.
