"Commander of HTMS Thepa” says cambodia's naval capabilities don't consider a threat

Today (27 March) at 10:35 AM at the Trat Naval Supply Base pier, Lieutenant Commander Parit Kerdnak, Commanding Officer of HTMS Thepa, revealed details of the ship's mission during the clashes along the Thai-Cambodian border. He stated that in the latest operation, following the announcement of a "Day of Warning," HTMS Thepa fired illuminating shots in the area of Ban Sam Lang, Nong Ri village, and provided shore-based fire support to destroy the 130 mm gun on Koh Yo, Cambodia, which has the capability to fire at Koh Kood and the Trat Marine Corps Task Force. This posed a high threat, prompting the Royal Thai Navy to deploy HTMS Thepa, along with HTMS Prachuap and HTMS Chonburi. The operation involved firing at enemy targets for approximately eight minutes. HTMS Thepa was the last to be deployed, as it fired manually, while the other two ships used automatic firing. The Cambodian guns were damaged and unusable for further service. The operation successfully destroyed the assigned target.

When asked about the capabilities of HTMS Thepa, Acting Lieutenant Commander Parit stated that the ship can reach speeds of 72 knots, and its supporting guns can fire at 13,500 yards, or approximately 10 kilometers. During the Thai-Cambodian border clashes, HTMS Thepa fired within 5 miles and also encountered enemy resistance after deployment.

When asked about the ship's readiness to defend Thai territory in the two years before its decommissioning, should further fighting occur, Acting Lieutenant Commander Parit replied that he believes it will likely be called back for support, as HTMS Prachuap and HTMS Chonburi were already called in from the First Naval Area Command to assist in shore bombardment and target destruction. Regarding the HTMS Thepa, if it returns to or docks at Sattahip, it might be called back again if there's a potential conflict.

As for morale during missions on the ship, Lieutenant Commander-in-Chief Parit said that morale is high. Everyone knows what they have to do and understands that as soldiers, they must serve the nation.

Regarding the assessment of Cambodia's naval capabilities, Lieutenant Commander-in-Chief Parit stated that their capabilities are relatively low because they don't have as many ships with advanced weaponry as ours. In a direct confrontation, we have more long-range weapons and better radar capabilities, so they don't pose a significant threat.

When asked about the possibility of China sending corvettes to Cambodia in 4-5 years and how we are preparing to respond, Lieutenant Commander in Chief Parit stated that they have already begun implementing the systems, but it will take considerable time to learn. It took us years to learn our systems, so during the time Cambodia is learning, we can study the systems from the Chinese TIS (True-to-Earth System), as we already have the specifications from China and can integrate them for combat assistance. "And we also have several ships from China," said Lieutenant Commander-in-Chief Parit, expressing his pride as a ship commander nearing retirement. He stated that he was proud, considering the mission complete. The ship had served the nation fully and was being decommissioned according to the plan, without any obstacles that would have caused an early decommissioning. He considered it a successful journey.

Photo : Khanisorn Lorthongdaeng