North Korean Destroyer Kang Kon, Sunk in 2025, Conducts Mass Cruise Missile Launch

The North Korean Choe Hyon-class destroyer Kang Kon launched ten cruise missiles during live-fire tests.

The KPA_bot project published the corresponding video on X.

During the tests, the ship also evaluated its artillery, machine gun armament, and electronic warfare systems.

The footage showed onboard combat modules, including a local analog of the ZU-23-2 system, machine gun mounts with NSV-type weapons, and a 30-mm anti-aircraft gun.

On one side of the vessel, four modules with paired NSV-type machine guns were visible, along with three single machine gun positions and one 30-mm anti-aircraft mount.

Previous ships of this class, including the lead destroyer Choe Hyon, reportedly did not carry such a dense close-range defensive armament configuration.

The increase in short-range air defense weapons may reflect lessons drawn from the Russia-Ukraine war, particularly the growing threat posed by surface and aerial drones.

During the same trials, the Kang Kon also launched a salvo of ten Hwasal-2 cruise missiles.

Kang Kon History and Accident

The Kang Kon was laid down in May 2024 at a shipyard in Chongjin. During the initial launch attempt on May 21, a serious accident occurred, damaging the hull.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un described the incident as a “criminal act,” stating that it “instantly humiliated the dignity and self-respect of our state.”

He ordered that the vessel be restored by the June plenary session of the Workers’ Party of Korea and called for accountability for those responsible for the design and construction errors.

Following the failed launch, North Korean authorities detained four officials, including the chief engineer, construction manager, and project administrative manager. Ri Hyon-song, a member of the Central Military Commission, was also detained and identified by state media as one of the key figures responsible for the incident.

Satellite imagery from June 2 showed the vessel had been righted. On June 5, it was successfully relaunched and transferred to the Rajin shipyard, where it entered dry dock on June 8 for repair work.

On June 12, the ship was officially commissioned into service under the name Kang Kon, named after the first Chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, Kang Kon, who was killed during the Korean War. The destroyer was assigned hull number 52.

As of March 2026, the vessel was reported to be anchored in Chongjin for an extended period and possibly unable to maneuver independently.

However, on June 6, North Korean state media reported that the ship had completed sea trials two days earlier.

Choe Hyon Class

The 5,000-ton Choe Hyon-class destroyers are multi-role missile vessels of the North Korean Navy. They are equipped with two types of vertical launch systems: a larger system for strike missiles and a smaller system for air defense missiles, totaling 74 launch cells.

The ship’s artillery armament includes a 127-mm automatic gun and a close-in air defense system that visually resembles the Soviet AK-230 and AK-630 systems.

Air defense is supplemented by a stern-mounted system resembling the Russian Pantsir-M.

Anti-ship and strike weapons are housed in transport-launch containers along both sides of the hull and likely include eight Hwasal-2 cruise missiles capable of engaging moving targets. Each side is also fitted with four launchers for a North Korean analog of Spike ER/NLOS missiles.

Twin 533-mm torpedo tubes are installed on both sides, partially covered by a radar-absorbent structure.

The ship’s radar system consists of four panel arrays, which appear to be based on active electronically scanned array (AESA) technology.

These systems perform multiple roles, including airspace monitoring and weapons guidance.

An interesting feature of the Choe Hyon-class vessels is the installation of separate radar antennas at the bow and stern to guide anti-aircraft missiles.

This likely indicates the use of radio-command guided missiles, similar to those used in the Tor air defense system.