054/A FFG Thread II

asif iqbal

asif iqbal

Lieutenant General
if we compare the early Type 054 and even Type 054A with the later models we can see a significant improvement in the submarine hunting capabilities

I believe these warships are now optimised for blue water operations
 
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Tam

Brigadier
Registered Member
asif iqbal said:
if we compare the early Type 054 and even Type 054A with the later models we can see a significant improvement in the submarine hunting capabilities

I believe these warships are now optimised for blue water operations
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Their defensive and EW capabilities have also improved. First the CIWS upgrades from the 730 to the 1130. Later the jammer has changed and there are additional things added to the ESM. Then the HQ-16 is upgraded with new illuminators and likely with a new missile. Finally additional satellite communications are retrofitted to all existing ships.
 
Maikeru

Maikeru

Major
Registered Member
Tam said:
Their defensive and EW capabilities have also improved. First the CIWS upgrades from the 730 to the 1130. Later the jammer has changed and there are additional things added to the ESM. Then the HQ-16 is upgraded with new illuminators and likely with a new missile. Finally additional satellite communications are retrofitted to all existing ships.
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Just needs a decent ASW helo (Z15??) then.
 
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Andy1974

Senior Member
Registered Member
Maikeru said:
Just needs a decent ASW helo (Z15??) then.
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Nowadays, and looking at the Airshow revelations, it seems drones are the way to go. I’d like to see a whole range of unmanned helo’s and VTOL UAV’s in the hanger instead of any manned ones at all.

Ideally they would all be focused on ASW too, which could turn the type into quite something.

I think they could fit 4 large, long endurance ASW drones in that hanger. If these ships are to be used in a picket, or screening role, then each could cover a very large area if this was the case.
 
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Tam

Brigadier
Registered Member
One important upgrade to all 054A and which is present to all ships in the PLAN is these on the move flat panel SATCOMs. New ships are now having them installed on the dock while old ships have been retrofitted with them.

054A 522 Ziyang Oct 1 party 1.jpg

Internally, the array should look like this. Unlike a fixed SATCOM, SATCOMs on ships are designed to be on the move, so they continue to lock on to satellites and maintain gyroscopic stability while the ship is being rocked by waves.
download (23).jpeg
In my opinion, this is like the PLAN's version of Starlink.

Starlink-RV.jpg
 
TK3600

TK3600

Major
Registered Member
So what are the consensus on the potential 054A upgrade? Stretched heli deck for Z-20, the new radar that guide HQ-16 further, and new satcom? Should be good bang for the buck.
 
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Tam

Brigadier
Registered Member
TK3600 said:
So what are the consensus on the potential 054A upgrade? Stretched heli deck for Z-20, the new radar that guide HQ-16 further, and new satcom? Should be good bang for the buck.
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The new guidance radar isn't speculative, as its already been a few ships. New SATCOMs have been refitted throughout the entire fleet that includes the oldest ones. New ECM and ESM upgrades are applied to the latest batch and the fourth batch. The first two 054A have also feature an ESM array, likely as a test bed at first, then as a permanent fixture. The stretched helo deck we have not seen yet.

If the 054A gets anything like the naval version of the HQ-16FE, that's going to be a tremendous increase in surface to air capability.

The new SATCOM, ESM and ECM are force multipliers, especially if the circular SATCOMs we are seeing act like a naval version of Starlink.
 
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