FFG 054/054A Thread

[crobato]

I have been discussing the "new" issue with some members of the CDF. This is the picture of the 2nd ship launch. While many details are similar, there are also a few dissimilar details.

Notice that the 2nd ship was launched without the AshM radar on top. The new one did.

Notice that the weather has the grey winter skies on the 2nd ship. This one has clear blue skies, more typical of summer.

I want you to note that there is a driveway on the right side of the hanger to the camera's view point. Note this driveway on the right side of the 2nd 054A's launching.

Note in the new picture, this driveway has apparently been broken up for some reason and there is considerable weathering.

 

[crobato]

I have a question. What the hell are those things protruding at the side of 526's hull?

 

[tphuang]

I have been discussing the "new" issue with some members of the CDF. This is the picture of the 2nd ship launch. While many details are similar, there are also a few dissimilar details.

Notice that the 2nd ship was launched without the AshM radar on top. The new one did.

Notice that the weather has the grey winter skies on the 2nd ship. This one has clear blue skies, more typical of summer.

I want you to note that there is a driveway on the right side of the hanger to the camera's view point. Note this driveway on the right side of the 2nd 054A's launching.

Note in the new picture, this driveway has apparently been broken up for some reason and there is considerable weathering.

yeah, i took a look at my collection of photos. It appears that this photo was taken at around January, whereas the other photos resemble the photos I had of the 2nd ship from February.

 

[xuansu]

I have a question. What the hell are those things protruding at the side of 526's hull?

Those should be the roll reducing fin, 减摇鳍

 

[Jeff Head]

I have a question. What the hell are those things protruding at the side of 526's hull?

Those are stabilizer fins I believe. Helps keep the vessel from rolling in the swells, etc.

I have been discussing the "new" issue with some members of the CDF. This is the picture of the 2nd ship launch. While many details are similar, there are also a few dissimilar details.

Note in the new picture, this driveway has apparently been broken up for some reason and there is considerable weathering.

Could the so called "new" pic be from the first launch? Perhaps someone could compare it to those. The 2nd launch, with the newer drive area just looks newer than the one with the tree in the foreground and the broken up rock down near the water.

Still. it would be good to know if they are in fact launching a third from HP.

 

[crobato]

Pictures are too ambigious to present a 3rd ship is being built in HP. Majority opinion don't seem to support that either.

An interesting Chinese text just posted on the CDF seems to suggest that the immediate contract is about 5 ships, with their pennant numbers.

導彈護衛艦
東海艦隊
529 XXX號 054A /建造中/
530 XXX號 054A /建造中/
北海艦隊
546 XXX號 054A /建造中/
547 XXX號 054A /建造中/
南海艦隊
568 XXX號 054A /建造中/

The missile frigate
The East China Sea Fleet
XXX 529, 054A / construction /
XXX 530, 054A / construction /
North Sea Fleet
XXX 546, 054A / construction /
XXX 547, 054A / construction /
The South China Sea Fleet
XXX 568, 054A / construction /

 

[water bamboo]

only five! PLAN must order at least twenty, and then produce them quickly. There are too many old Jianghu frigates are waiting retirement, and Taiwan province maybe split out at any time.

 

[crobato]

This is just the immediate order, and by that, what I mean is the first order. It does not mean that there are more ships to come, considering how many engines they have ordered. Even though the engines are made in China, they are licensed from the French, and thus each engine ordered is still reported to the French, which of course, will have to disclose the orders for financial reasons. Given the orders, we should expect at least 12 ships, unless the said engines end up in other ships, which is also a real possibility due to the 071 LPDs and the new hospital ships.

The same situation exists for the MTU engines. The engines being ordered suggests a good possibility of at least another 5 to 10 Songs or Yuans in the future. But then again, its not clear if the engines are also shared with the Houbeis, or with destroyers in a CODAG arrangement.

 

[bd popeye]

The PLAN has never built that many of a ship of this sofistication. If they did say in three years time do you have any idea how long it will take to train crews for this class ship??

It took the USN 12 years to build and comission 31 Oliver Hazzard Perry FFG's. A ship of probaly less armanment & capablity than the 054/054A.

 

[Violet Oboe]

Yes, there appears to have been some ´kicking ass´ in the higher ranks of PLAN since Beijing was dissatisfied with paying up enourmous sums for an at best glacial naval buildup. After getting the message PLAN has indeed brought some dynamics into its business and they are also intensifying recruitment and training successively.

Probably the leadership wants to employ a truly modernized PLAN as a ´fleet in being´ capable to deter Taiwan from seceding and the US from intervening in China's globally expanding interests. (...perhaps even some risk fleet calculus?)
Of course the capable and versatile 054A FFG's are a very important element in future contingencies and PLAN would need certainly more than 12 units as fast as possible. (~20 units would be sufficient at the first stage)