According to a tweet published by the French MoD on January 13, 2023, the French Carrier Strike Group operates with the Japanese destroyer JS Suzutsuki.
Follow Navy Recognition on Google News at this link
French aircraft, Japanese destroyer Suzutsuki, and aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle. (Picture source: French MoD)
JS Suzutsuki (DD-117) is the third ship of Akizuki-class destroyers. She was commissioned on 12 March 2014 and was incorporated into the 8th Escort Corps of the 4th Escort Corps.
On July 10, 2016, as the 25th dispatched anti-piracy action surface corps, sailed from Sasebo base to the Gulf of Aden off the coast of Somalia with the escort ship JS Inazuma and returned to Japan on January 12, 2016.
The Akizuki class of destroyers of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force is intended to escort the Hyūga-class and Izumo-class helicopter destroyers and safeguard the other Aegis-capable warships such as the Kongō class and Atago class.
The destroyer provides defense against surface, airborne and undersea threats. The class was initially designated as "19DD", referring to a date on the Japanese calendar, specifically the 19th fiscal year of the Heisei period (2007).
The hull structure was based on the one of the Takanami-class destroyers. There are many small improvements, such as cleaner lines to reduce the radar signature and decoys for torpedoes; but the principal changes can be summed up as more powerful engines, sensors, sonar and the indigenous ATECS battle management system that has been called the Japanese AEGIS.
The main gas turbine engines are standardized on a higher-powered version of the Rolls-Royce Spey SM1C, in contrast to the combination of Rolls-Royce SM1C and General Electric LM2500 turbines used in the Takanami class.
The main features of the class include enhanced C4ISR and Anti-Aircraft Warfare (AAW) capability, with an OYQ-11 advanced Combat Direction Sub-system (CDS) and FCS-3A AAW weapon sub-system.
