On March 25, the Royal Thai Navy HTMS (His Thai Majesty’s Ship) Taksin (FFG 422), conducted a historic firing of Harpoon Block 1C, defining a firing area in the Andaman Sea about 130 nautical miles west of Phuket (or approximately 240 kilometers) missile fired at a distance of 55 nautical miles, or about 100 kilometers. This is the longest shot ever fired in the Southeast Asian region using actual warheads. The practice of firing the Harpoon Block 1C missile is a relatively long period of time, and it is still in the lifespan of this fire.
HTMS Taksin, hull number 622, commissioned in 1995, is a modified version of the Chinese-made Type 053 frigate, designed and built by the China State Shipbuilding Corporation in Shanghai. Her sister ship, HTMS Naresuan was delivered in November 1995. On 3 June 2011, Saab announced that it was awarded a contract for the upgrading of the two Naresuan class frigates. The scope of the upgrade will include Saab’s 9LV MK4 combat management system, Sea Giraffe AMB, CEROS 200 fire control radar, EOS 500 electro-optics system and data link systems for communications with the newly acquired Royal Thai Air Force Erieye surveillance aircraft.
HTMS Taksin armed with 1 × 5 in/54 (127 mm) Mk-45 Mod 2 naval artillery gun, 2 × 30mm MSI-DSL DS30MR automated small calibre gun 8 cell Mk.41 vertical launch system for 32 x RIM-162 ESSM, 8 × RGM-84 Harpoon SSM launcher and 2 × triple 324 mm Mk-32 Mod.5 tubes. On 3 June 2011, Saab announced that it was awarded a contract for the upgrading of the two Naresuan class frigates. The scope of the upgrade will include Saab’s 9LV MK4 combat management system, Sea Giraffe AMB, CEROS 200 fire control radar, EOS 500 electro-optics system and data link systems for communications with the newly acquired Royal Thai Air Force Erieye surveillance aircraft.
The Harpoon is an all-weather, over-the-horizon, anti-ship missile, developed and manufactured by McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing Defense, Space & Security). The Standoff Land Attack Missile (SLAM) is a land-attack variant. The Block 1 missiles were designated AGM/RGM/UGM-84A in US service and UGM-84B in the UK. Block 1B standard missiles were designated AGM/RGM/UGM-84C, Block 1C missiles were designated AGM/RGM/UGM-84D. Block 1 used a terminal attack mode that included a pop-up to approximately 1,800 metres (5,900 ft) before diving on the target; Block 1B omitted the terminal pop-up; and Block 1C provided a selectable terminal attack mode.