How strong is the North Korean Navy really?

The North Korean navy has about 60,000 personnel, the smallest of the country's three military branches. The navy is only 1/20th the size of the army and 1/2 the size of the air force.

According to the National Interest, in terms of organization, the North Korean navy consists of a headquarters, two command fleets, 16 warship squadrons, two naval sniper brigades and a number of coastal defense units. This force also has training centers, logistics, ports and even controls shipbuilding facilities.

The North Korean Navy currently operates between 810 and 990 ships of Soviet, Chinese and North Korean origin.

North Korea analyst Joseph Bermudez estimates that by 2001, there were about 360 ships operating under the Western Fleet in the Yellow Sea, and 480 ships operating under the Eastern Fleet in the area opposite the Sea of ​​Japan.

Due to lack of funds to build new ships, many old ships are still in service today.

Most North Korean naval vessels have heavy machine guns and light cannons. Some are also equipped with grenade launchers, which are used to support landings. Some North Korean naval vessels are still equipped with deck-launched torpedoes.

Another key part of North Korea’s navy is its submarine fleet. In its 2015 report on North Korea’s military capabilities, the Pentagon noted that Pyongyang had 70 submarines of unknown type in service.

Previously, in the 2010 multinational report on the South Korean Cheonan incident, the North Korean navy was said to be operating 20 Romeo-class submarines, 40 Sang-O-class coastal submarines and 10 Yono-class midget submarines.

A series of Sang-O-class midget submarines were designed to serve as naval divers in covert operations while the rest were tasked with defending the North Korean coast.

North Korea’s most important submarine, however, is the Gorae-class ballistic missile submarine, first photographed by satellite in 2014 and apparently based on the Yono-class.

The naval website Covert Shores estimates the ship weighs 1,650 tons at full load and has a crew of 70-80. Gorae has a ballistic missile launcher.

North Korea also maintains a small landing craft force, with about 100 Nampo-class amphibious craft. The North Korean navy also has up to 130 Kongbang-class hovercraft. In addition to ships, North Korea also has a significant amount of artillery spread across both coasts and in the cities.

According to VNN