The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force commissioned its tenth Mogami-class frigate, JS Nagara (FFM-10), on June 29, 2026, at Kure Naval Base in Hiroshima Prefecture, according to Naval News.
Nagara was handed over by shipbuilder Mitsubishi Heavy Industries at its Nagasaki yard shortly before commissioning and was inducted into Patrol and Defense Squadron 2 of the JMSDF's newly established Patrol and Defense Group. The ship was laid down in July 2023 and launched in December 2024 under Japan's fiscal year 2022 procurement plan, at a cost of about 52.3 billion yen ($323 million). Like Mogami-class ships from the seventh hull onward, Nagara entered service already fitted with its 16-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launching System; earlier vessels received the VLS after commissioning.
At roughly 5,500 tons full load, the class is built around aggressive automation: an Integrated Ship Handling System lets a single operator dock the ship without tug assistance, and the JMSDF says only four sailors are needed on the bridge during normal operations, versus seven or eight on a conventional destroyer. Total crew is about 90, compared with roughly 200 on older JMSDF destroyers — a design response to Japan's shrinking pool of military recruits. Armament includes a 127mm Mk 45 gun, Type 17 anti-ship missiles, SeaRAM close-in defense, and anti-submarine sonar.
Japan plans to field 12 baseline Mogami-class frigates by the end of fiscal year 2027, followed by 12 upgraded "New FFM" variants by fiscal year 2032, bringing the JMSDF's combined FFM fleet to 24 hulls. The New FFM design has also gone international: Australia selected it in August 2025 for its SEA 3000 program, planning 11 ships with the first three built in Japan, and New Zealand has shortlisted the upgraded Mogami alongside the UK's Type 31 for its own future frigate competition, with a decision expected by the end of 2027.
More News
All news →
First HACM Hypersonic Cruise Missile Flight Test Unit Released Over Australia
The U.S. Air Force says a Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile flight test unit was released by the Royal Australian Air Force over an Australian test range, without disclosing the date, the launch aircraft or whether the scramjet-powered weapon achieved powered flight.
France Fires M51.3 Nuclear-Capable Missile From a Submarine for the First Time
The French Navy ballistic-missile submarine Le Vigilant launched an M51.3 without a nuclear warhead off Finistère, western France, on October 6, 2026, the first submarine firing of the missile's latest version, Defense News reported.
P-3 Orion Fleet Down to 101 Aircraft in 12 Countries, Roughly Half Its 2022 Size
GlobalMilitary.net's inventory data counts 101 P-3 Orions in military service across 12 countries, down from 211 in 16 countries in its 2022 snapshot, as US agencies retire special-mission Orions and Japan draws down the largest remaining fleet.
North Korea Says Hypersonic Missile Drill Hit Target 1,000 km Away; Seoul Tracked More Than 700 km
North Korea says a Saturday launch from the Wonsan area was a drill of its hypersonic strategic weapon system that struck a target 1,000 km away; South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff tracked a single ballistic missile flying more than 700 km into the East Sea.
US Navy Awards Raytheon Up to $24.4 Billion Multiyear Contract for SM-6 Missiles
The US Navy on Oct. 1, 2026 awarded RTX's Raytheon unit a multiyear contract worth up to $24.4 billion for Standard Missile-6 interceptors, a five-year deal with two option years whose quantities remain undisclosed and whose funding Congress has yet to appropriate.
Ukraine Says Its FP-7 Ballistic Missile Has Been Used in Combat for the First Time
President Volodymyr Zelensky said on October 1, 2026 that Ukraine's domestically developed FP-7 tactical ballistic missile, built by Fire Point, had been used in combat for the first time, without disclosing the target or location; the claim has not been independently verified.