In an attempt to prevent further submersion after a failed launch mishap last week, North Korea has reportedly deployed several sizable white balloons around its damaged 5,000-ton-class battleship, according to new satellite images.
The photos, taken by Maxar Technologies, reveal the balloons encircling the half-submerged ship, which is positioned on its side. Additionally, blue tarps cover the vessel, indicating an attempt to conceal what has become a significant setback for the country’s leader, Kim Jong Un.
While the purpose of the apparent balloons is unclear, experts theorize that they are being used to swiftly repair the destroyer, according to CNN.
The shape of the objects and the presence of tail fins suggest the white balloons are likely aerostat aircraft. Similar to blimps, these aircraft achieve buoyancy by using a lifting gas, enabling them to float in both air and water.
“It looks like what appear to be balloons have been installed not to refloat the ship, but to prevent the ship from further flooding,” Rep. Yu Yong-weon, a South Korean National Assembly lawmaker and military analyst, told the outlet.
Other experts explained that lifting the enormous warship out of the water could cause additional damage— the forward part of the vessel is still stuck on the pier as the rest of its body pulls it downward.
Using the balloons could keep the vessel in limbo as they make repairs.
But even the balloons might not be enough to save the warship — normal procedure would call for raising the ship from below.
“It is highly likely that the ship is under quite a lot of stress anyway,” said Nick Childs, senior fellow for naval forces and maritime security at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
It is not clear how much damage the ship suffered when a transport cradle on the ship’s stern detached early during a launch ceremony on May 23.
Kim, who watched the disaster unfold, called the botched launch a “criminal act” and ordered officials to rapidly repair the ship before the end of June.
Four people have been arrested, including the shipyard’s chief engineer.
The vessel is Pyongyang’s second known destroyer.
The failed launch proved an embarrassment to Kim, who is eager to build greater naval forces to deal with what he calls US-led military threats.
