Yoon Young-ha
Yoon Young-ha | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 윤영하 |
| Born | November 24, 1973 Siheung-gun, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea |
| Died | June 29, 2002 (aged 28) Yellow Sea, near Yeonpyeong Island, South Korea |
| Allegiance |  South Korea |
| Service/ |  Republic of Korea Navy |
| Rank | Lieutenant Commander (posthumous) |
| Unit | ROKS Chamsuri (PKM-357), 2nd Fleet |
| Commands held | Commanding officer, PKM-357 |
| Battles/wars | Second Battle of Yeonpyeong |
| Awards | Chungmu Order of Military Merit (posthumous) |
| Relations | Yoon Doo-ho (father) |
Yoon Young-ha (Hangul: 윤영하; November 24, 1973 - June 29, 2002) was a Republic of Korea Navy officer and commanded the patrol boat PKM-357.[1] He died in the line of duty in the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong when North Korean patrol craft crossed the Northern Limit Line and fired upon the South Korean ships on June 29, 2002. Yoon was subsequently posthumously promoted to lieutenant commander and received the Chungmu Order of Military Merit.[2][3] Class of guided-missile patrol boats were subsequently named after him.[4]
Early life and education
Yoon was born on November 24, 1973, in Siheung County, Gyeonggi Province. His father, Yoon Doo-ho, was a former Republic of Korea Navy officer, whose work inspired the young Yoon to join the navy someday.[3] After leaving the navy service, his father went to work at a shipping company, where he worked for some three years while Yoon was in elementary school, living abroad in London, England, and Rotterdam, Netherlands.[5] Upon their return to South Korea, Yoon finished high school at Songdo High School, Incheon City. He then joined the 50th Republic of Korea Naval Academy and became an ensign officer in 1996.[3]
After being commissioned, Yoon held various positions within the fleet. He started out as a deck officer on naval warship Gyebong in 1996, later becoming public affairs officer of the Wonsan in 1998. From 1999 he became operations officer of patrol corvette Jecheon.[6] On 23 January 2001, Yoon was made commander of PKM-357, a Chamsuri-class patrol boat attached to the Republic of Korea Navy's 2nd Fleet, which patrols the Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea.[7]
Second Battle of Yeonpyeong
On 29 June 2002, in the early stages of the close of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan, two North Korean patrol boats breached the Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea. South Korean patrol boats, among them PKM-357, moved toward the offending vessels and issued warnings for them to leave. [8] The North Koreans did not heed the warnings and the fighting began, after one of the North Korean vessels fired at about 10:25 hours, with its 85 mm main gun, at one of the South Korean patrol boats.[8]
PKM-357 suffered most damage. Despite enemy fire, Yoon gave his crew instructions on the bridge until he was killed. The fight went on until 10:56, when the North Koreans left the area after being shot at by South Korean reinforcements[8] Four members of the South Korean forces lost their lives in the conflict; a fifth member died due to injuries sustained and a sixth sailor's body was recovered from the Yellow Sea following the fight.[3] PKM-357 sank when it was under towing. According to South Korean sources, there were between 30 killed and injured among the North Koreans; one of their patrol ships was badly damaged.[8]
Legacy
The posthumous promotion of Yoon from lieutenant to major was accompanied by the awarding of the Chungmu Order of Military Merit. Twenty years since his death, his family was receiving benefits as if he had died while having the rank of lieutenant instead of the promoted rank of major[9] In October 2022, an amendment to military compensation rules by the Ministry of National Defense made it such that the family of posthumously promoted soldiers will receive pension according to their posthumous rank.[10]
The Republic of Korea Navy declared the battle a victory for the South Korean forces twenty years after in June 2022. In addition, Yoon's brother Yoon Young-min and his mother Hwang Deok-hee took part in the flower-laying ceremony on board the patrol ship named after him.[11]
The Republic of Korea Navy started its development of the PKG-class guided missile patrol ship project in response to shortcomings in its capabilities revealed in the battle.[12] The flagship of this series of ships PKG-711 was laid down by Hanjin Heavy Industries in 2003 and was commissioned to the Republic of Korea Navy fleet in December 17, 2008 [13] It had taken 19 months of sea trials prior to commissioning the ship, which was built within a decade after the incident and named after Yoon. It is known that altogether there were 18 PKG-class ships built between 2008 and 2018. [14]
One of the streets in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, named after Yoon, is where he studied.[3] Yoon's father, Yoon Doo-ho, visited anniversary ceremonies at the Republic of Korea Navy 2nd Fleet and published a statement in Kookmin Ilbo in 2010 that the loss of his son to the battle in West Sea and witnessing the sinking of the ROKS Cheonan eight years after increased his conviction that the sacrifices of the sailors should never be forgotten. [5] Actor Kim Mu-yeol played the role of Yoon as the commander of PKM-357 in the 2015 South Korean film Northern Limit Line directed by Kim Hak-soon. [15]
See also
- Second Battle of Yeonpyeong
- Northern Limit Line (film)
- Yoon Youngha-class patrol vessel
- ROKS Chamsuri (PKM-357)
- Park Dong-hyuk (soldier)
- Republic of Korea Navy
References
- ↑ KH디지털2 (2015-06-29). "[Newsmaker] 'Northern Limit Line': Korean patriotism". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ "10 years after Yeonpyeong, drill honors 6 killed". koreajoongangdaily.joins.com. 2012-06-18. Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 News), 경인일보(Kyeongin Daily (2024-12-09). "'제2연평해전' 영웅과 함께 걷다… 연수구 '윤영하소령길' [인천 명예도로 톺아보기·(2)]". 경인일보 (in 한국어). Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ "Yoon Youngha class PKG Patrol Missile Vessel Korean Navy". www.seaforces.org. Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 윤두호 (2010-05-23). "軍은 士氣를 통해 강해진다". 국민일보 (in 한국어). Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ Herald, Korea (2012-06-28). "Questions remain 10 years after naval clash in West Sea". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ↑ ""Senior, I Will Not Forget"…Memorial Ceremony for Major Yoon Young-ha of the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong". The Asia Business Daily. 2021-03-10. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "The Naval Clash on the Yellow Sea on 29 June 2002 between South and North Korea". Republic of Korea Ministry of National Defense. 2002-07-01. Retrieved 2026-04-18 – via GlobalSecurity.org.
- ↑ 박응진 (2022-10-08). "故윤영하 소령 유족, 20년만에 대위 아닌 '소령' 기준 연금 받는다". 뉴스1 (in 한국어). Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ "'Bereaved Families of Fallen Soldiers Can Now Claim Compensation'... National Assembly Passes Amendment to State Compensation Act". The Asia Business Daily. 2024-12-10. Retrieved 2026-04-20.
- ↑ 박응진 (2022-06-29). ""형이 이 나라를 잘 지켜줄 겁니다"… 제2연평해전 승전일 '해상 헌화'". 뉴스1 (in 한국어). Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ "Fast Patrol Boat (PKX) Gumdoksuri / Guided Missile Patrol Killer (PKG)". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 2026-04-18.
- ↑ Hamlin, Andrew (2015-07-09). "Northern Limit Line: Crossing Emotional and Historical Borders". Northwest Asian Weekly. Retrieved 2026-04-18.
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