August 28, 2014: The Colombian Navy recently received a retired Donghae-class corvette from South Korea. Four of the Donghae-class ships entered South Korean service in the 1980s and they are now being retired and replaced. Designed and built in South Korea for coastal patrol and anti-submarine warfare, each displaced 1,100 tons and was armed with a 76mm gun, two twin 30mm autocannon and a twin 40mm cannon as well as twelve depth charges and six anti-submarine torpedoes.

The Colombians don’t need the all the anti-submarine gear, although the sonar might be useful. Without the anti-submarine weapons these ships can be operated by a crew of 80 and stay at sea for about ten days at a time. Colombia will use this refurbished corvette to patrol coastal waters for drug smugglers.

Colombia also received two newly built patrol boats. These 250 ton ships cost about $16 million each. These ships have a top speed of 41 kilometers an hour and are armed with a 30mm autocannon and machine-guns.