One of the ROK Navy’s efforts to transform it from a coastal defense force to a blue water navy has included the Gwanggaeto the Great-class destroyers, also known as KDX-I.The Gwanggaeto was designed to replace the old destroyers in the ROKN that were transferred from the US Navy in the 1950s and 1960s. It was thought to be a major turning point for the ROKN in that the launching of the first KDX-I meant that ROKN finally had a capability to project power far from its shores.