North Korea seems to be reinstating a second Choi Hyun The class’s frigate took part and was partially submerged at the launch ceremony last month. The latest image of the warship shows that it has now returned to its upright position, although the target of restoring the frigate by the end of this month remains very suspicious.
38 North, a website specializing in North Korea’s analysis, published satellite images from Airbus defense and space on June 2 on Chongqing Shipyard, as shown below. This appears to be the first time since a failed launch on May 21, showing that the warship is upright. Despite the shallow cloud cover overhead, the flight deck (particularly the Helipad marking) appears to be visible at the stern, and the overall outline of the ship has also changed.
It’s incredible speed. The image was partially covered by clouds, but the capsized North Korean warship is now standing upright again. What makes it even more impressive is that they obviously did it all manually.
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: Airbus Space and Defense/38 North, June 2 www.38north.org/2025/06/quich
— Martin Williams (@martynw.bsky.social) 2025-06-03T18:28:44.771Z
The ship is estimated to be 5,000 tons, the second of its kind Choi Hyonit officially unveiled in April. You can read all information about the armed categories of frigates in our previous detailed analysis and follow-up reports.
38 North noted that workers could be seen pulling ropes from the docks in an attempt to manually turn right in the warship, which was in a separate satellite image on May 29 in Airbus defense and space where at least 30 buoys and/or airbags could be seen with the ship. Some reports suggest that these are barrage balloons, although this doesn’t seem to make any sense in this case.
At this stage, it is not possible to determine the level of damage the frigate suffered during its miscarriage launch. 38 North indicated that the launching mechanism might have been trapped in the bow of the ship, secured it to the land as it slides into the water, and then the ship flips. In the May 29 image, the surrounding area of the bow appears to be damaged.
If the vessel has been successfully corrected, the next step in the repair process is not clear. There is no dry dock, if this level of work is required, the boat can be easily moved to Zhong Jin. At the same time, bringing it to another yard can be a challenge, especially if the hull is seriously damaged. Seek external help, including from Russia or China, to choose. In this case, a floating dry dock may be particularly useful.
North Korea’s latest naval destroyer has suffered significant damage before it was launched. In a rare admission, North Korean state news agency KCNA reported yesterday that an incident occurred in a new destroyer in Chongjin, which is about to be launched. pic.twitter.com/0pfuqehynf
North Korean media have previously claimed that the warship has not been seriously damaged, at best high If not impossible.
Detailed underwater and internal inspections of the warship confirmed that unlike the initial announcement, there were no loopholes at the bottom of the warship, the starboard side of the hull was scratched, and a certain amount of seawater flowed into the stern part through the rescue channel, according to the damage caused by the cause on May 23, which caused the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause of the cause measure.
At least, North Korean shipyards appear to have made significant progress in initial recovery on board, which is more or less in line with official estimates. “Experts estimate that by pulling seawater from flooded rooms and getting the bow out of the slide and over 10 days to restore the warship’s side, it will take two to three days to maintain the balance of the warship.” kcna It also said in the May 23 report.
On the same day, twz Satellite images were obtained showing the barrier ship still covered by blue tarps, but as the restoration work began to take shape, there are now two steel cables connecting it to the shipyard dock.
Given the awkward and highly public nature of the incident, and the fact that dictator Kim Jong Un attended the launching ceremony, at least the above ship should be repaired as soon as possible.
Kim called the incident a “criminal act” and promised to “handle it at the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee this month.” This is a high-level meeting of the ruling Workers’ Party of North Korea. At least three shipyard officials were detained as part of a subsequent investigation. The head of Zhongjin Shipyard was initially summoned by state law enforcement officers, but it did not appear to be detained. Ri Hong Son, a senior official of the Communist Party of Korea, was also called.
Earlier this month, Kim also called for the restoration of frigates before the same meeting, amid widespread suspicion outside North Korea.
Overall view Choi Hyonthe sister ship of the frigate involves misfortune. kcna
While returning the frigate to an upright position would be an achievement, there will likely be a more obvious but crucial work. How it stands upright now, partly in the water and partly on the shore is also an unstable situation.
Given the public, the extent of the incident and its consequences is certainly worth noting. Shortly after the incident, Pyongyang quickly announced details of the incident, including Kim’s comments, apparently for controlling the narrative. Coupled with the availability of satellite images, this now means more focus on recovery efforts, especially given Kim Jong Il’s fantastic schedule recovery.
