Chinese training ship Shichang

Shichang is a training ship in the People's Republic of China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). The ship is formally designated as a "defence mobilization vessel" and may be used for helicopter or navigation training, as a container ship, or as a hospital ship. It is the PLAN's first aviation training ship.^[1] The NATO reporting name for the type is Daishi-class AXT.^[2]

History
People's Republic of China
Name	Shichang
Namesake	Deng Shichang
Builder	Qiuxin Shipyard[1]
Launched	April 1996[1]
Commissioned	27 January 1997[1]
Identification	Hull number: 82[1]
Status	Active
General characteristics
Class & type	Training ship[1]
Displacement	10,160 tonnes (full load)[1]
Length	120 metres (390 ft)[1]
Beam	18 metres (59 ft)[1]
Draught	7 metres (23 ft)[1]
Propulsion	2 x diesel engines;[1] 2 shafts[1]
Speed	17.5 knots (32.4 km/h; 20.1 mph)[1]
Range	8,000 nautical miles (15,000 km; 9,200 mi) at 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)[1]
Capacity	300 containers[1]
Complement	170 crew;[1] and 200 trainees[1]
Aircraft carried	2 x Harbin Z-9A[1]
Aviation facilities	Flight deck[1]

Design

The original plan was to convert Shichang from the civilian roll-on/roll-off ship Huayuankou; a new ship was built instead.^[3]

Shichang has a bridge structure forward with the flight deck occupying most of the remaining area behind it; the funnel is toward the stern on the starboard side. The flight deck has two landing spots and may be reconfigured;^[1] options include a modular hangar and control space behind the forward structure, or 300 standard 20-foot containers.^[3]

See also

• RFA Argus (A135), a Royal Navy auxiliary with a similar configuration