The vessel's ability to carry a powerful heavyweight torpedo capable of defeating ships and submarines — the US-made Mark 48, or Mk-48 — is a real eye-catching feature.
The vessel — its English name "Narwhal" and Mandarin name "Hai Kun" — is the first sub of the island's Indigenous Defense Submarine program, a top priority in Taipei.
AdvertisementAdvertisementTaiwan President Tsai Ing-wen receiving a submarine model in front of Taiwan's first locally built submarine, "Narwhal," during the vessel's unveiling ceremony at the CSBC Corporation shipbuilding company in Kaohsiung in September.
US Navy/MC1 Michael B ZingaroOriginally designed in the late 1960s and deployed in the late 1980s, the Mk-48 torpedo was intended to counter advances in Soviet submarine technology.
These considerations make the Mk-48 torpedo key.
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