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Type 057 Frigate

China announced plans for a new multi-role frigate class warship in 2013. The name of this frigate has been variously called 054B and 057 over the years, but these designations reflect two entirely diffeent ship designs.

China was reported to have completed the design of a new Type 057 fourth generation frigate project. It was initially expected that the construction of ships of this type would start at the end of 2014 or the first quarter of 2015. Presumably, a series of frigates of the new project will consist of 20 vessels, and their supply of Chinese Navy will be completed by 2025. However, the authenticity of the construction of 057 missile frigate remained to be further confirmed as of early 2017.

As part of the Navy of the People's Liberation Army of China frigates Type 057 Project will replace the same number of obsolete ships of the same class of the project Type 053. for the first time the project Type 057 ships will be equipped with a hybrid power plant, which will significantly reduce their noise compared to previous projects frigates. Displacement Type 057 will be about 4.5 thousand tons. The ships will be equipped with new radar installations vertical launch missiles and anti-aircraft missile systems. The frigate design will be used stealth technology. On frigates Type 057 project will be based, two anti-submarine helicopters and reconnaissance drones.

In mid-March 2013 the Chinese Navy adopted a new Type 056 frigate project, built using stealth technology. The fleet ship with hull number 582 was named "Bengbu" in honor of the prefecture in Anhui province in eastern China. It was expected the Chinese military will be built 20 ships of this type.

If the 057 type in the deep sea to deal with high-speed three-dimensional mobile submarines, it may be equipped with large low-frequency active sonar. The future of China's aircraft carrier formation 055,052D HQ-9 is responsible for long-range air defense, 057 frigate ship only equipped with a range of 70Km, the last active control of the HQ-16G, the new short-range air defense missiles, Anti-submarine torpedo, so only 7 meters deep hair. Ship midships installed 2X4YJ-62 anti-ship missiles, 2X4 long-range multi-purpose torpedo. In order to strengthen the ocean anti-submarine ccapability, the ship might use a dual hangar, with Ka-28 or Z-20 helicopters.

In recent years developed a new generation of destroyers are using integrated mast, its benefits are many. In addition to the British air search radar using double-sided antenna, most countries are using single-sided frigid antenna, 30 per minute to meet the tactical requirements. 057 type frigates are no exception, at the top of the bridge is the "Lotus Lantern" shape of the integrated mast, the upper part is installed three-coordinate search radar antenna, the middle is HQ-16G mid-range guidance antenna, 054A ship Various communications and electronic warfare antennas will also be retrofitted with an integrated mast to improve the stealth performance of the entire ship.

The 382 type three-coordinate air search radar is 054A type standard. 057 type will not install 052D as a large four-sided shield, but the use of S-band single-sided coordinate search radar. This radar has been loaded with 892 test ship in 2012, because it is a new generation of digital phased array, the antenna area is not large, but the detection target distance than the 382 type farther.

As early as March 14, 2014, reports on the Chinese Navy next generation frigate news had caused waves. It was reported that China's fourth-generation missile frigate - 057 frigates had completed design, the frigates may at the end of 2014 to early 2015 start building. At the same time exposure of a suspected Chinese next-generation frigate design program also left military fans excited.

The Type 057 main task is anti-submarine warfare, which needs low noise. The noise of the gas turbine is smaller than that of the diesel engine, but it is less economical at lower output power. At the same time, the complexity of the gear box and through the ship's stern propulsion shaft is not conducive to noise reduction. If the gas turbine and the diesel engine only drive the generator, and the three are placed on the shock absorber, part of the power for the ship's stern propulsion motor, the other part of the ship for other equipment, this not only solves the noise reduction problem, but also provides specifically for the power generation of auxiliary equipment, greatly simplifying the power group model, the volume and weight of the power capsule, as well as fuel consumption are reduced.

Analysts speculated that the 057 type frigate power will use dual-gas turbine and dual-diesel generator layout for power generation, and through the distribution center reasonable output propulsion power and the whole ship power supply. In the lower part of the hull and equipped with a new type of telescopic electric propulsion. The main blade uses a 5-blade variable pitch propeller.

The Type 057 would only need a 28,700 kilowatts QC-280 gas turbine, two 12PC2.6B diesel engine, the total power of 46,000 kilowatts. The two have been successfully developed 20 megawatts of permanent magnet propulsion motor.

China’s Most Advanced Warship a Flop: Fake Vertical Launch, Bogus HQ-10, No Cannons Installed China Observer Sep 8, 2024

0:00 at the end of August rumors began 0:02 circulating about the people Liberation 0:04 Army's 057 stealth frigate the ship 0:08 discreetly entered a mysterious Port but 0:10 to much surprise photos of it quickly 0:12 surfaced on social media experts were 0:15 stunned by what they saw the vessel 0:18 touted as one of China's most advanced 0:20 appeared more like a work in progress it 0:23 had more flaws than anyone expected one 0:25 of the biggest issues was the hq10 0:28 shipped to air missile launcher 0:30 positioned behind the command Tower 0:32 something was clearly wrong what should 0:34 have been a launcher with eight missiles 0:36 now only had one launch hole this 0:39 anomaly led to speculation among experts 0:41 could it be a laser weapon an optical 0:43 device most of them agreed that it was 0:46 just an hq10 model most likely used to 0:49 test the capabilities the lack of a main 0:51 gun raised further concerns how could 0:53 the pla call this ship Advanced if it 0:56 lacked basic armaments discrepancies 0:58 didn't stop there earlier images had 1:01 shown a vertical launch system but in 1:03 the new photos it was gone the ship's 1:06 Flight Deck appeared imposing but there 1:08 wasn't even a hanger door even more 1:11 surprising the hatch for the sonar array 1:13 had disappeared leaving questions about 1:16 the ship's anti-submarine capabilities 1:18 the Mast also looks familiar it looked 1:20 like a smaller version of Japan's 1:22 unicorn stealth antenna system but it 1:25 didn't seem like it could hold much 1:26 equipment even more bizarre the 1:28 superstructure was completely be with no 1:31 antennas or Radars in sight has their 1:33 stealth technology gone too far 1:35 stripping away basic detection equipment 1:37 experts quickly pieced it together this 1:39 ship wasn't built for real Combat it was 1:42 likely a concept verification platform 1:44 designed for experiments testing how to 1:46 reduce radar signals or trying out new 1:49 propulsion systems some suggested that 1:51 it was meant to test an all electric 1:53 hybrid propulsion system similar to the 1:56 US zomalt class destroyers the idea was 1:59 to to proove efficiency and cut costs 2:02 while also powering high energy weapon 2:04 systems in the future however with so 2:06 few weapons currently installed 2:08 questions remain about how effectively 2:10 the system can be tested for Energy 2:12 Efficiency the pla has been showcasing 2:15 high-tech equipment in recent years each 2:17 piece more impressive than the last on 2:20 paper it's often a disappointment with a 2:22 closer look just last August the 057 2:25 frigate was revealed for the first time 2:28 by may it was out for SE trials but all 2:30 it had garnered was public ridicule the 2:33 pla has been pushing forward at an 2:35 accelerated Pace the 003 aircraft 2:38 carrier for example underwent four sea 2:41 trials in just a few months this urgency 2:43 is likely driven by mounting 2:45 International tensions they're they're 2:47 cutting short development and testing 2:48 times despite the flaws desperate to get 2:51 these ships in use it feels like they're 2:53 preparing for something big almost like 2:55 they're racing against the clock as for 2:57 the 057 it was first cleared clearly 3:00 spotted last November at the Ling 3:02 Shipyard at that time it still had its 3:04 main gun vertical launch system and 3:06 flight deck and looked somewhat 3:08 respectable it seemed they had put in a 3:10 lot of effort to improve stealth 3:12 borrowing ideas from Sweden's vispy 3:14 class Corvette and the US's zumwald 3:16 class destroyer in the photos from last 3:19 year the ship had what appeared to be a 3:21 decent vertical launch system likely 3:23 similar to France's Micah VL air defense 3:26 system it was enough for basic missile 3:28 interception essentially the 057 frigate 3:31 is a luxury upgrade of the 056 model 3:34 with slightly better protection and 3:36 improved strike capabilities 56 class 3:39 ships meanwhile will likely Patrol 3:41 Coastal Waters securing the mainland 3:43 safety the 057 as an upgraded version is 3:47 expected to be deployed in high tension 3:49 areas like the South China Sea or the 3:51 Taiwan straight it's tougher than the 3:53 056 better suited for complex battle 3:56 environments this will allow the larger 3:58 ships in the Chinese Navy to take on 4:00 more distant missions as for the 056 4:03 class frigates 22 were commissioned in 4:06 2013 but by 2021 they had already been 4:09 converted into Coast Guard vessels a 4:11 service life of just 8 years this shows 4:14 the flaws in their design and production 4:17 rather than upgrading them they were 4:18 handed over to the Coast Guard which is 4:20 now using Naval frigates to intimidate 4:22 smaller Nations like the Philippines the 4:25 pla still has about 50 of the 056a 4:28 frigates which are primarily Coastal 4:30 submarine Hunters they're mainly 4:32 stationed close to home keeping an eye 4:34 on submarines so why develop the 057 is 4:38 it about Stealth not really it's not 4:41 invisible to radar it just looks like an 4:43 ordinary civilian vessel the idea is to 4:45 blend in with the busy Waters of the 4:47 first island chain making it harder for 4:50 the US Japan and Taiwan to detect so in 4:53 many ways the 057 isn't much different 4:56 from the 4:57 056 long-distance missions however ever 5:00 are still left to larger ships like the 5:01 054a frigate which Chinese shipyards are 5:04 mass-producing in an upgraded version 5:06 the 054 Al some point out that the US 5:10 Naval intelligence reported China's ship 5:12 building capacity as over 200 times that 5:14 of the US that was likely last year's 5:17 statement they used the US's 5:19 constellation class frate as an example 5:21 which was originally scheduled for 5:23 delivery within 48 months but is now 5:25 long overdue in reality the US is 5:29 unlikely to rush ship production in the 5:31 manner seen in China if a vessel like 5:34 China's 056 class frigate were to serve 5:37 only 8 years before being retired it 5:39 would likely provoke Congress to 5:41 question if they were wasting taxpayer 5:43 money when us officials praised China's 5:45 rapid ship building capabilities it's 5:47 often seen as a push for increased 5:49 defense funding rather than a genuine 5:51 endorsement of China's methods also the 5:54 US Navy's slower Pace has its reasons 5:57 its Fleet is already large and capable 5:59 there's no immediate global conflict 6:01 requiring rapid production China on the 6:04 other hand is playing catchup building 6:06 as fast as it can but their ships are 6:08 only about a third the size of America's 6:11 once China's Navy reaches a certain size 6:13 they'll likely struggle to maintain such 6:15 large ship building operations the 6:17 reason is simple once China's military 6:19 needs are met they'll be left 6:21 maintaining their own Fleet there won't 6:23 be much need to build new ships after 6:25 all few countries are interested in 6:26 buying Chinese warships most prefer us 6:29 made ones among the world's leading 6:32 Naval Powers many rely heavily on us 6:34 technology Japan and South Korea's 6:37 primary vessels are all us-built the 6:39 same holds true for countries like 6:41 Australia or those in Southeast Asia and 6:44 South America whose naval ships and 6:46 weapon systems are largely americanmade 6:48 even Europe's allies rely heavily on us 6:51 equipment the UK for instance uses 6:53 americanmade InterContinental missiles 6:56 on its strategic nuclear submarines as 6:58 China's Navy approach is saturation and 7:00 its demand for new ships declines the 7:02 future of Chinese shipyards becomes 7:05 uncertain without new Naval orders their 7:07 production lines could face a 7:09 significant slowdown currently the 054a 7:12 frigate is being upgraded to the 054a L 7:16 with Chinese shipyards producing them in 7:18 large numbers but isn't the upgrade 7:20 supposed to be the 7:21 054b what happened it turned out that 7:24 the pla built two 054 B ships and was 7:27 disappointed the 05 54b was intended to 7:31 be China's Blue Water frigate but doubts 7:33 have emerged about its ability to 7:35 operate effectively in deep Waters 7:37 leaving aside its ability to protect 7:39 aircraft carriers just based on its 7:41 Hardware the 054b seems like a 7:44 half-finished attempt at a blue waterer 7:45 frot the radar on the 054b frigate is 7:49 large and operates on a dualband system 7:51 offering decent anti-jamming 7:53 capabilities but the radar isn't high 7:55 enough it's nothing like the Spy 6 radar 7:58 on the US constellation class frigate 8:00 which is mounted much higher and can see 8:02 much farther in Long Range operations 8:04 the 8:05 054b might not detect enemy aircraft or 8:08 missiles in time now let's look at the 8:10 weapons the 054b has 32 vertical launch 8:14 systems the same as the 8:16 054a however it doesn't have the 8:18 advanced CCL vertical launch system 8:21 found on the 052d or 055 frigates 8:25 instead it uses the hq6 surface to air 8:28 missiles and the 8 anti-submarine 8:30 missiles its combat power is fairly 8:33 average in comparison the US 8:35 constellation class can load four essm 8:38 medium-range air defense missiles in 8:40 each launcher it can also carry NSM 8:43 anti- ship missiles and possibly even 8:45 Tomahawk cruise missiles the difference 8:47 between the 32 launchers of the 054b and 8:51 the constellation is obvious sustained 8:53 Firepower is crucial in Naval Warfare 8:56 and the 054 B's limited number and 8:58 variety of missiles leave it at a 9:00 disadvantage in longrange battles the 9:03 propulsion system also raises concerns 9:05 the 054b displaces just over 6,000 tons 9:09 while the constellation class comes in 9:11 at 7,300 tons designed specifically for 9:14 longrange Missions the constellation 9:17 uses an integrated electric propulsion 9:19 system which is fast and fuele efficient 9:22 in contrast the 054b has limited 9:25 endurance and would need frequent 9:26 refueling during extended missions espe 9:29 when escorting an aircraft carrier air 9:32 defense is another weak spot the 9:34 constellation class is equipped with 9:36 essm missiles which are standard for 9:38 modern warships they can easily handle 9:40 incoming anti-ship and cruise missiles 9:43 the 054b however relies on the hq10 9:47 system while it offers some air defense 9:49 it can only intercept missiles at close 9:51 range in a saturation attack the 054b 9:55 would likely become a Target simply put 9:57 the 054b tries to emulate the 10:00 constellation class but doesn't come 10:01 close in air defense regarding 10:04 multi-roll capabilities the 10:06 constellation class can carry Tomahawk 10:08 cruise missiles giving it land attack 10:10 capability the 054b has no such option 10:14 it's limited to anti- ship and 10:16 anti-submarine roles modern Naval 10:18 Warfare especially in longrange 10:20 operations requires flexibility the 054 10:24 B's small weapon Arsenal makes it poorly 10:26 suited for complex tactical scenarios 10:29 why widening the gap between it and the 10:31 constellation class realizing that the 10:33 054 B's future doesn't look very bright 10:36 the CCP quickly introduced a new plan 10:39 that's the 057 stealth frigate the 10:42 current version of the 057 weighs only 10:45 2,000 tons it's mainly suited for 10:47 patrolling areas like the South China 10:49 Sea and the Taiwan straight trying to 10:52 compete with the US constellation class 10:54 in deep sea operations with this 2,000 10:56 ton vessel shows how desperate the CCP 10:59 has become there are reports that the 11:01 057 will eventually expand to 6,000 to 11:05 7,000 tons expanding a ship from 2,000 11:08 to 7,000 tons is not a simple task it's 11:11 not simply a matter of adding more steel 11:13 and materials increasing tonnage 11:15 requires integrating additional weapons 11:17 and equipment while preserving the 11:19 vessel's stealth capabilities the key 11:21 for a stealth frigate is to minimize its 11:23 radar signature as the ship size grows 11:26 and more radar systems weapons and 11:28 equipment are in installed it raises 11:30 questions about whether the frigate can 11:32 still maintain its intended stealth 11:34 performance so growing the 057 from 11:37 2,000 to 7,000 tons is no easy task the 11:40 small prototype may look impressive now 11:42 but it faces many challenges when 11:44 deployed for long-range missions can it 11:46 keep its stealth features will its range 11:48 be enough is its Firepower strong enough 11:51 these are all big questions for the 11:53 engineers so if the CCP ever manages to 11:56 build a 7,000 tons stealth frigate it'll 11:58 be interesting to see how well it 12:00 actually performs China's frigate 12:03 development has been a long journey when 12:05 the 054a was introduced it was cheap 12:08 effective and ready for use then came 12:10 the 054b which was expected to be a 12:13 major upgrade but aside from its 12:15 dualband radar and slightly better 12:16 surveillance capabilities the 054 B's 12:19 anti-ship and anti-submarine functions 12:22 weren't much better than the 054 A's 12:25 there was no revolutionary Improvement 12:27 in a fleet the 054 surveillance 12:29 capabilities aren't particularly useful 12:32 either the cost of the 054b is also much 12:35 higher most of the budget has gone into 12:38 its radar electronics and weapon systems 12:41 with only a few 054 BS built so far the 12:44 early development costs have been spread 12:46 across each ship further driving up the 12:49 price even before its combat 12:51 capabilities are fully tested the 054b 12:54 is already draining the military budget 12:56 regarding the propulsion system it's 12:58 unclear whether the 054b uses a combined 13:01 Diesel and gas system or an integrated 13:04 Electric System most likely the two 054 13:07 BS are experimental ships that will stay 13:10 in service for a few years before any 13:12 decision on mass production in the 13:14 meantime it would make more sense to 13:16 keep building the reliable and 13:17 affordable 054a while the 054b undergos 13:22 further testing the 054a is still in 13:25 production now with upgrades under the 13:27 054 a l model model the hull has been 13:30 lengthened to fit the z20 helicopter 13:33 which sounds like an improvement however 13:35 this modification introduces new 13:37 challenges has the propulsion system 13:39 been upgraded to handle the change has 13:42 the ship's balance been considered can 13:44 it remain stable in rough Seas or will 13:46 it struggle in heavy waves the 054 Al 13:49 has also switched from a 100 mm large 13:52 caliber Naval gun which looks powerful 13:54 but is only effective against light 13:56 Coastal Targets in Modern Warfare 13:59 missiles are the dominant weapons Naval 14:01 guns are merely for display the 054 a 14:04 seems out of place perhaps designed for 14:07 lower intensity conflicts the 368 type 14:10 x-band radar is said to have improved 14:12 detection of low altitude stealth 14:14 targets but it's still a dual-fed radar 14:17 unlike the US Navy's four-faced systems 14:20 such as the a spy 6 the 368 radar lags 14:24 behind in both range and precision 14:27 against Advanced US anti- ship missiles 14:29 like the NSM the 368 radar might only 14:32 detect them at close range leaving 14:34 little time for response despite the 14:36 hype this radar is not up to the task 14:39 what's even more surprising is the claim 14:41 that the 054 Al is being prepared for 14:43 the Taiwan straight while the 054 Al has 14:47 seen some improvements it's still a 14:49 relatively cheap frigate with average 14:51 performance for a Navy that claims to be 14:53 the second largest in the world relying 14:55 on upgraded old ships for potential 14:57 conflict raises doubts about their 14:59 effectiveness the CCP has promoted the 15:02 advancements of the 054b but there's 15:05 little concrete evidence to back up 15:06 those claims as for the 054 Al while 15:10 it's marketed as a durable option the 15:12 reality is that China simply lacks the 15:14 resources to build more advanced ships 15:16 China's Naval strategy isn't about 15:18 pursuing the best technology instead 15:21 it's about settling for what works it's 15:23 less about quality at a good price and 15:25 more about managing with what they can 15:26 afford with China's economy now in 15:29 Decline even building new ships has 15:31 become a financial challenge the 054a 15:34 frigate has been in production since 15:36 2002 with five batches built so far it 15:39 has become a bestseller among medium and 15:41 large frig globally the first batch of 15:44 four 054 a fretes was built between 2002 15:48 and 2008 primarily as test models from 15:52 2009 to 2012 the Navy constructed 12 15:55 more deeming the design reliable enough 15:57 for regular use 15:59 the second batch became the standard 16:01 version in 2013 the Navy ramped up 16:04 production and built 14 more ships 16:06 making the 054a a staple in the fleet 16:09 between 2017 and 2022 another 10 ships 16:13 were built with nearly all combat 16:15 features added marking the peak of the 16:18 054a development by this point the pla 16:21 had a fleet of 40 frots following a 16:24 straightforward strategy build enough 16:26 ships and no one will dare to challenge 16:28 them now the fifth batch the 54 Al has 16:31 arrived it's said to have the most 16:33 significant modifications yet starting 16:35 from ship number 41 at least 10 more are 16:38 planned the 054a has put on a new coat 16:41 and is squeezing out its remaining value 16:44 looking back the 054a has steadily 16:47 improved through small upgrades and 16:48 sheer numbers becoming a best seller in 16:51 the frate world but ship building isn't 16:53 just about quantity the 054a still has 16:56 many old problems like its outdated dies 16:59 engines and limited speed from the 17:01 outside it looks like the world's 17:02 largest frigate Fleet but insiders would 17:04 know the truth with so many flaws it's 17:07 unclear how these ships would perform in 17:08 a real conflict on July 4th Japan's 17:12 Destroyer JS suzutsuki entered China's J 17:15 Jang Waters traveling at high speed for 17:18 more than 20 minutes a Chinese a Chinese 17:21 054a frigate attempted to follow but 17:23 couldn't keep up despite being less than 17:26 90 km from the East China Sea fleet's 17:28 Command Center 17:29 and well within range all the pla could 17:31 do was issue a warning that said move 17:33 along quickly the JS suzutsuki is no 17:37 ordinary vessel as part of the akizuki 17:39 class it displaces 6,800 tons and is 17:43 powered by four Rolls-Royce gas turbines 17:45 with 64,000 horsepower it can cover 17:48 1,600 km in just 53 hours in comparison 17:53 the 054a frigate with its four diesel 17:56 engines and a top speed of 27 knots was 17:58 was outclassed the JS suzutsuki easily 18:02 hit 30 knots highlighting a key issue 18:05 with pla ships they lack gas turbines 18:07 for vessels under 7,000 tons South 18:10 Korea's chungnam class and Japan's Mami 18:13 class both use gas turbines as do the US 18:16 Perry class frates which are over 50 18:18 years old the pla's 054a and 18:22 054b rely entirely on diesel engines 18:25 among the three major East Asian navies 18:27 the pla is the only one still using 18:30 diesel engines for longrange Missions a 18:32 glaring disadvantage the pla's approach 18:35 to ship development appears to be a case 18:37 of robbing Peter to pay paaul the 054a 18:40 remains the only reliable frigate in 18:42 service but its slow speed presents 18:44 challenges within an aircraft carrier 18:47 battle group the 054a struggles to keep 18:50 Pace with the carrier and as of now no 18:52 suitable gas turbine solution has been 18:54 developed to address the shortcoming 18:57 despite heavy investment the zero 54b 18:59 remains experimental and falls short of 19:02 competing with the US constellation 19:04 class given this it's unclear why China 19:07 continues to build them it appears to be 19:09 a waste of resources then there's the 19:11 057 if the 054b isn't meeting 19:15 expectations why continue pouring money 19:17 into it shifting focus into the 19:19 057 with its experimental stealth and 19:22 electric propulsion systems might make 19:24 more sense though still in its early 19:26 stages the 057 at least holds potential 19:29 for future advancements the pla's ship 19:32 building program seems rushed with no 19:34 cohesive long-term plan despite design 19:36 flaws the spending continues at a rapid 19:38 Pace this raises questions is there 19:41 corruption behind the scenes 19:51 [Music]