East Sea Fleet

Chinese naval unit Eastern Theater Command NavyThe People's Liberation Army Navy's jack and ensignActive1955–presentCountryChinaAllegianceChinese Communist PartyBranchPeople's Liberation Army NavyTypeNaval fleetPart ofEastern Theater CommandGarrison/HQNingbo, ChinaCommandersCurrentcommanderWang ZhongcaiCurrent political commissarMei WenMilitary unit The Eastern Theater Command Navy (东部战区海军, ETCN) is a formation of China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and the naval component of the Eastern Theater Command. The ETCN was reorganized from the East Sea Fleet (ESF) by 2016. Currently Wang Zhongcai is the commander of the ESF and Mei Wen it's political commissar. History The PLAN was formed toward the end of the Chinese Civil War. In March 1949, Zhang Aiping of the Third Field Army was ordered by the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the Chinese Communist Party to create a naval force from the field army. Zhang's only previous naval experience was organizing an irregular riverine force near Hongze Lake in 1941 and leading it in a successful campaign against local bandits. The PLAN was created on 21 April when Zhang established the East China Military Region Navy,