North Korea reportedly has deployed a cluster of mysterious balloon-like objects around a partially submerged warship that was severely damaged during a failed launch on 21 May.
The balloons, captured by satellite images of Maxar Technologies, look like an apparent attempt to conceal the extent of the damage, and its repairing, according to analysts.
The 5,000-ton destroyer – a flagship of Pyongyang’s naval modernisation push – was being launched at a shipyard in the northeastern port city of Chongjin when a malfunction caused it to slip into the water prematurely.
The vessel’s stern became submerged while the bow remained stranded on the slipway, reportedly causing significant structural damage.
President Kim Jong Un, who witnessed the launch, called the failure a “criminal act” and ordered a round the clock repair of the megaton destroyer before the late-June plenary session of the ruling Workers’ Party, calling it a matter of national pride
So far, four individuals, including the shipyard’s chief engineer, have since been detained.
Defence analysts and military experts suggest, that the mysterious balloons serve more than one purpose.
“It looks like they’re not being used to refloat the ship, but to prevent further flooding,” said South Korean lawmaker and military analyst Yu Yong-weon.
Retired US Navy captain Carl Schuster said they might also be intended to obstruct low-altitude drone surveillance or alleviate pressure on the ship’s damaged stern. “That area likely suffered the most severe damage and is under considerable stress,” he said.
Some analysts have likened the objects to aerostat aircrafts – smaller dirigibles that use gas for buoyancy in air or water. However, they noted that there was an absence of standard flotation equipment typically used in maritime salvage.
“This suggests North Korea’s naval recovery capabilities may lack sophistication,” Schuster noted.
While Pyongyang claims the damage to be superficial, reporting only minor flooding and hull scratches, maritime experts are far from convinced, with some suggesting that the ship may have to be dismantled altogether.
“Having it half in and half out of the water is the worst possible scenario,” said Decker Eveleth,. He warned that any attempt to pull the submerged stern could twist and fracture the keel, rendering the ship beyond repair.
Nick Childs, senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, warned that the ship’s current position – wedged between land and sea – poses a significant salvage challenge. “Raising it from above could twist the keel and cause irreparable damage. In many cases, you’d have to dismantle parts of the vessel just to move it,” he said.
The botched naval launch of the massively hyped vessel, serves as a major embarrassment for both Kim Jon Un, and the North Korean military, which has been doubling down on its drive for naval modernisation in recent years, and looking to expand its maritime capabilities amid mounting regional tensions. The full extent of the damage remains unclear, but analysts suggest repairs could take months – if the vessel is salvageable at all.
