THE country's second Scorpene submarine was named and launched by the Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Nur Zahirah yesterday morning at a ceremony witnessed by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin at the Navantia Naval shipyard.

Deputy Defence Minister Datuk Wira Abu Seman Yusop, armed forces chief Gen Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Zainal, navy officials and shipyard workers were among those who gathered to celebrate the launching of the 67.5-metre diesel-powered submarine, KD Tun Razak.

It will be manned by a crew of 31.

The KD Tun Razak, like the country's first submarine, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman, was built by DCNS of France and Navantia of Spain.


Tuanku Nur Zahirah performed the customary launch ritual of breaking a bottle on the bow of the vessel.

The crack of the bottle on the bow was greeted with applause and navy personnel saluted the occasion by singing the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) anthem, Samudera Raya.

The crew of the KD Tun Razak celebrated their arrival by sounding the submarine's foghorn and in keeping with naval tradition, other ships in the dockyard reciprocated the launch of a new naval vessel.

Tuanku Mizan and Tuanku Nur Zahirah were then invited by navy chief Datuk Abdul Aziz Jaafar to inspect the KD Tun Razak, which will enter service in March, 2010.

In his speech, Abu Seman said the Scorpene submarines would strengthen the RMN's capability in undertaking the many challenging tasks facing it.

He said it would not only protect the country's shores but also the underwater assets.

"Malaysia is essentially a maritime nation. Given its geographical setting, it is inevitable that Malaysia's national interest and security concerns are closely related and associated with the sea."

He said the country's maritime area was about twice its land mass area.

"Within this span of water lies rich maritime resources and minerals that increasingly contribute to the country's economy."

He pointed out that more than 90 per cent of the country's domestic and international trade was dependent on sea transportation.

"On the seabed lies underwater piping that transport our oil and gas ashore, as well as cables that link major international communication networks," he said.

He said the submarine was named after the country's second prime minister, Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, in recognition of his contribution to the country.

The first submarine, KD Tunku Abdul Rahman, is named after Malaysia's first prime minister.

Both submarines can undertake a wide range of missions, including naval blockades, information-gathering and landing or retrieval of commandos.

They can operate alone or in combination with air and sea forces.

The new generation diesel-powered Scorpene has been hailed as a benchmark in the world conventional submarine market.

It is capable of operating in coastal waters and the high seas. It is armed with wire-guided torpedoes and Exocet SM39 sub-launched, anti-surface-ship missiles.

Malaysia is the second customer for the vessel after Chile, while India is acquiring it under a slightly different deal since it is building it in its own dockyard under licence.



Both submarines will be based at the naval base in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.



The Scorpenes can operate at depths of 350m for 40 days, making them suitable for deployment in the South China Sea and the Straits of Malacca.