The lead ship of type 052C DDG#170 Lanzhou was commissioned in August 2004, which means it is time for a MLU. Since 052C and D share the same hull design, one could wager that it will be upgraded to the spec of 052D or spec of last 052C.
So how likely will it be upgraded to the universal VLS, 130mm gun, new radar and sensors, and lengthen the flight deck to that of 052DG?
Lengthen, probably not.
Change of VLS? We'll see but I don't feel its pressing.
Change of radar? Wholesale change not likely. I don't think the hole is big enough for the larger 346A. The upgrade will likely be internal, such as new back end systems, and changing the old radar T/R modules to something more state of the art, like what is used on the latest 346A . This could have been done without anyone knowing about it. Due to the smaller size of the 346 radar vs. the 346A, even with upgraded modules, the radar won't have the same number of modules so the performance won't be as good as the 346A but improved over its original form. Most important is that the 052C and the 052D will use the same radar modules so you only need to stock one kind of spare instead of two. Internal change, call it a modernization tune up, is highly likely. I would speculate that this would have already taken place. With AESA you have to understand that if a module or element gets burned out, you can replace it from the back, slip the burned board out and slip in a new one. Then you have to recalibrate the radar, which is where the probe, that bar underneath the radar comes in. In the later 346A version, the far field probe gets replaced a new system that has to use mutual coupling and surface wave propagation that has a few elements sending out a signal that propagates like a wave across the array.
130mm gun? I don't feel its pressing enough for the cost.
Sensors? I would point out that one particular sensor --- the ESM --- has been changed on a number of 052C to reflect that of the latest batches of 052D. Physically, the older ESM unit is shaped like a cylinder, which reminds me of the oil filter in a car engine. The new one is shaped like a capsule, namely a cylinder with a rounded top, and supported by legs. Like a thin R2D2. No idea how the previous one or the new one performs. But it seemed to matter enough for the 052Cs to effect this change. Given the number of older 052Ds heading back to Jiangnan for repairs and tuneups, I like to see new photos of ships like the Kunming whether they have gotten the new ESM unit. During Liaoning's tuneup early this year, where she got a new bridge, additional SATCOMs, she also got the new ESM unit.
Another new change that is being retrofitted on both 052C and 052D, and also appears on the 054A, is a flat cylindrical cake shaped antenna. A ship would usually have two of them, and I say usually, because the latest photos of 161 Hohhot --- pretty sure everyone saw those photos as they were posted everywhere --- showed she also had three of these arrays on the rear in addition to the two on top of the bridge. Usually it appears as two on top of the bridge, and on the 054A, the arrays are on top of the hanger near the decoys or the rear set of Front Domes. These new antennas are likely to be dealing with high speed digital communication, and my guess, its for CEC or cooperative engagement. This antenna does not apper in new builds and even just commissioned, and many 052D doesn't have them either. As more pictures arise, I see more and more ships having these retrofitted. A good example would be 117 Xining.
The 153 Xi'an, which recently made that visit to Europe, is a good example of a 052C that has the new ESM unit and communication units.
