Welcome to Malaysia, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman

bIt's official, 3rd of Sept 2009 will be the proud moment for the Malaysian Armed Forces and the Royal Malaysian Navy, the first of our Scorpene class Submarines, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman has already arrived at National Hydrography Centre, Pulau Indah on 9.20 am. The sub sailed from Toulon, France on 11th of July for 54 days before arriving at Port Klang. KD TAR had made stopover at eddah, Djibouti and Cochin en route. The RMN officers and sailors had successfully completed their four years of stringent training in France.

KD TAR docked at Port Klang

The pioneer crew of KD TAR consist of 32 officers and sailors commandered by Cdr Zulhelmy Ithnain. The arrival of KD TAR were welcomed by Yang Di Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, RMN's captain-in-chief Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) chief General Tan Sri Azizan Ariffin, RMN chief Admiral Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Jaafar, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, and the family members of the submarine's crews.

Tuanku Mizan shaking hand with KD TAR crews

The multiracial crews of KD TAR
One of the KD TAR officer with his family members.

After the arrival, Tuanku Mizan and PM spent his time to visit inside the submarine.

Tuanku Mizan boarding the sub

PM boarding the sub

KD TAR will sail to the Lumut RMN base this saturday for a three-day stopover before its crew take a break for Hari Raya Puasa. It will then proceed to its home base at Teluk Sepanggar, Sabah.

Very proud to see Royal Malaysian Navy flag flying on top of the submarine

After the visit, Tuanku Mizan launched the commemorative stamps and first day covers in conjunction with the submarine's arrival in the country.

Tuanku Mizan Zainal officiates the launch of the commemorative stamps designed to mark this historical moment.

The second submarine, KD Tun Razak, is expected home in the end of this year. The procurement of the submarines will enhance the capabilities of the RMN. This will be the baby step into the era of development and progress. So, to all citizens, just sleep tight and rest assure that our waters is properly safeguarded by the Royal Malaysian Navy.
Hope for the RMN to be the best Armada in this region. Sedia Berkorban!!


*Technical details of the scorpene class submarine:

Displacement:	1450 tonnes (compact) 1,700 tonnes (normal) 2,000 tones (AIP)
Length:	59.4 m (compact) 66.4 m (normal) 76.2 m (AIP)
Propulsion:	Diesel-Electric, Batteries, and AIP
Speed:	20 knots (37 km/h) (submerged) 12 kn (22 km/h) (surfaced)
Range:	6,500 nautical miles (12,000 km) at 8 knots (surfaced) 550 nmi (1,020 km) at 5 knots (submerged)
Endurance:	40 days (compact) 50 days (normal) 50+21 days (AIP)
Test depth:	>300 meters
Complement:	31
Armament:	6 x 533-mm torpedo tubes for 18 torpedoes or SM.39 Exocet anti-ship missiles, 30 mines in place of torpedoes

Sources:
http://www.nst.com.my/articles/20090903155010/Article
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=437705
http://www.bharian.com.my/Friday/Nasional/20090904000845/Article/index_html
http://militaryofmalaysia.blogspot.com/2009/09/kd-tunku-abdul-rahman-selamat-tiba.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scorp%C3%A8ne_class_submarine