Type 054B frigate

The Type 054B (NATO/OSD Jiangkai III)^[3] is a class of guided-missile frigate under construction for the People's Republic of China. It is a development of the Type 054A frigate, and is around 16m (50ft) longer and 1m (3ft) wider than its predecessor.^{[4][better source needed]}

Class overview
Builders	Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard Huangpu Shipyard
Operators	People's Liberation Army Navy
Preceded by	Type 054A frigate
Building	1[1]
Active	1[1]
General characteristics
Type	Frigate
Displacement	5,500 to 6,000 tons (full)[1]
Length	147–150 m (482–492 ft)[1][2]
Beam	17–18 m (56–59 ft)[1][better source needed][2]
Armament	1 × 100 mm H/PJ-87 1 × 30 mm H/PJ-11 CIWS 1 × HQ-10 surface-to-air missile launcher 1 × 32-cell VLS 8 x YJ-83 anti-ship missiles
Aircraft carried	1x Z-20
Aviation facilities	Helipad

History and development

In the 2010s, Chinese military observers speculated a successor design to Type 054A frigate, 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^[2] and launched in 2023.^[5] The first frigate, Luohe was commissioned on 22 January 2025 at Qingdao.^[6][7]

Design

The Type 054B is longer and wider than the Type 054A. The bow is enclosed.^[2] A dual-face rotating phased array radar is mounted on the top of the forward integrated mast.^[2][8] The stern has ports for deploying towed sonars and decoys.^[2]

Armament includes a 100mm H/PJ-87 main gun, a 32-cell vertical launching system (VLS), a Type 1130 11-barrel 30mm close in weapon system, and a HQ-10 air defense missile launcher.^[2][8][9]

The helicopter pad is large enough to accommodate the Harbin Z-20.^[2][8]

Ships of class

Pennant number	Name	Namesake	Builder	Launched	Commissioned	Fleet	Status
545[6]	漯河 / Luohe[6]	City of Luohe	Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard[6]	August 26th, 2023[4][better source needed]	January 22, 2025[6]	North Sea Fleet[6]	Active
			Huangpu Shipyard[6]	2023[5]			Building

See also

• List of ships of the People's Liberation Army Navy