The KSS-III submarine Dosan Ahn Changho, built by Hanwha Ocean for the Republic of Korea Navy, has arrived at Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt near Victoria, British Columbia, after a voyage of more than 14,000 km from South Korea.
The submarine departed Jinhae Naval Base on 25 March 2026 and reached Canada after about two months at sea, with logistics stops in Guam and Hawaii. In Hawaii, two Royal Canadian Navy submariners joined the crew for the onward voyage to Victoria.
Dosan Ahn Changho and the Republic of Korea Navy frigate Daejeon will take part in joint exercises with the Royal Canadian Navy. The deployment is intended to show the platform’s ability to operate with Canada and other NATO-aligned naval forces.
The arrival comes as Hanwha Ocean is proposing the KSS-III design for Canada’s Canadian Patrol Submarine Project. The company says four submarines could be delivered before 2035 if a contract is signed in 2026, with eight additional boats delivered at one per year for a 12-submarine fleet by 2043.
The proposal also covers Canadian industrial participation, including maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities on both coasts, training facilities, technology transfer, localized production, supply chain integration and partnerships with Canadian companies and institutions.
Canadian partners named in the proposal include Geospectrum Technologies, Ultra Maritime, OSI Maritime Systems and Curtiss-Wright INDAL Technologies in areas linked to sonar, underwater sensors, naval combat systems and submarine support technologies.
Hanwha Ocean also plans to establish the Hanwha Arctic and Defence Innovation Centre in Canada to support defense technology development in fields such as AI-enabled systems, autonomy, digital engineering, advanced manufacturing, simulation, naval systems and aerospace technologies.
