Japan launches second "Hyuga Class" destroyer

YOKOHAMA, Japan, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- Japan's second "Hyuga Class" helicopter-carrying destroyer was launched Friday at IHI Marine United Inc's shipyard in Yokohama.

The naming and launching ceremony of a new helicopter destroyer  "Ise" is held at Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries (IHI)  Yokohama Shipyard in Yokohama, Japan, on Aug. 21, 2009. (Xinhua/Ren Zhenglai)

At a ceremony held at the shipyard, Parliamentary Secretary for Defense Nobuo Kishi, on behalf of Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada, gave the official name of "Ise" to the nation's largest destroyer.

The 197-meter long, 13,950-ton Ise can carry up to 11 helicopters aboard by using the deck and the hanger deck beneath it.

The vessel is scheduled to be commissioned into the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) in March 2011.

On March 18, the MSDF commissioned its first "Hyuga Class" helicopter-carrying destroyer "Hyuga," which raised concerns in the region.