China’s New Type 055 Guided Missile Destroyer Begins Sea Trials

August 28, 2018

The Diplomat:

The lead ship of the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA Navy) new class of Type 055 guided-missile destroyers (NATO designation: Renhai-class), Nanchang (with hull number 101), has left the Jiangnan shipyard in Shanghai for the first time on August 24 to commence its initial set of sea trials, according to images published on a Chinese microblogging site.

The sea trials come after a 14-month outfitting period following the launch of the warship in June 2017 in Shanghai. The Chinese Ministry of National Defense called the launch of the first-of-class Nanchang “a milestone in the PLA Navy’s strategic transformation and development,” at the time. The ship is expected to be transferred to the PLA Navy in 2019.

The PLA Navy intends to procure at least eight Type 055 destroyers — the largest surface combatants to be built for the PLA Navy to date — within the next five years. In the longer term, the service could field up to 24 guided missile destroyers of the class.

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