The Type 054B (NATO/
OSD Jiangkai III) is a
class
Class, Classes, or The Class may refer to:
Common uses not otherwise categorized
* Class (biology), a taxonomic rank
* Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects
* Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used d ...
of guided-missile
frigate
A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied.
The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...
under construction for the
People's Republic of China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
. It is a development of the
Type 054A frigate
The Type 054A (NATO/ OSD Jiangkai II) is a Ship class, class of guided-missile frigate from the People's Republic of China. It is a development of the Type 054 frigate; compared to its predecessor, the Type 054A has medium-range air defense capa ...
, and is around 16 m (50 ft) longer and 1 m (3 ft) wider than its predecessor.
History and development
In the 2010s, Chinese military observers speculated a successor design to
Type 054A frigate
The Type 054A (NATO/ OSD Jiangkai II) is a Ship class, class of guided-missile frigate from the People's Republic of China. It is a development of the Type 054 frigate; compared to its predecessor, the Type 054A has medium-range air defense capa ...
, designated Type 054B or Type 057. In the early 2020s, more confident intelligence suggested the successor to Type 054A would be the Type 054B. The first two hulls were laid down in 2022 at the Hudong shipyard and the Huangpu shipyard in Shanghai
and launched in 2023.
The first frigate, ''Luohe'' was commissioned on 22 January 2025 at Qingdao.
The second ship in its class, Qinzhou, was secretly commissioned, with its existence confirmed on April 12, 2025
Design
The Type 054B is longer and wider than the Type 054A. The bow is enclosed.
A dual-face rotating phased array radar is mounted on the top of the forward integrated mast.
The stern has ports for deploying towed sonars and decoys.
Armament includes a 100mm
H/PJ-87 main gun, a 32-cell
vertical launching system
A vertical launching system (VLS) is an advanced system for holding and firing missiles on mobile naval platforms, such as surface ships and submarines. Each vertical launch system consists of a number of ''cells'', which can hold one or mo ...
(VLS), a
Type 1130
The Type 730 is a Chinese seven-barrelled 30 mm Rotary cannon, Gatling gun/rotary cannon CIWS. It has a PLA Navy designation H/PJ12. It is mounted in an enclosed automatic turret and directed by radar, and electro-optical tracking systems. ...
11-barrel 30mm
close in weapon system, and a
HQ-10
The HQ-10 () is a short range surface-to-air missile designed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), currently in service as a point defense missile system aboard PLA Navy warships.
Development
The system was first adopte ...
air defense missile launcher.
The helicopter pad is large enough to accommodate the
Harbin Z-20
The Harbin Z-20 ( zh, t=直-20) is a Chinese medium-lift utility helicopter produced by the Harbin Aircraft Industry Group (HAIG). It was first flown on 23 December 2013 and has a maximum takeoff weight in the range of . The Z-20 can operate from ...
.
Ships of class
See also
*
List of ships of the People's Liberation Army Navy
The ship types in service with the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) include aircraft carriers, submarines, (both nuclear and conventional), amphibious transport docks, landing ships, tank, landing ships, medium, destroyers, frigates ...
References
{{Ship classes of the Chinese Navy
Stealth ships