The Jiangmen is the last of six Type 053H1G ships decommissioned out of front-line service; two 053H1G s have been transferred as training ships, while the Jiangmen will serve as a "national defense educational base," aka museum ship, in its namesake city of Jiangmen, Guangdong.
China's Type 053H3 frigates repurposed as training ships amid commissioning of more advanced vessels
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202503/1330420.shtml
By Liu Xuanzun Published: Mar 19, 2025 04:37 PM
Two
Type 053H3 frigates, formerly key warships of the Chinese People's
Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, have been repurposed as training vessels and
recently participated in a combat exercise. A military affairs expert
highlighted the rapid modernization of China's naval fleet, with
advanced frigates like the Type 054A and the newly commissioned Type
054B gradually replacing the older Type 053 series.
A warship
flotilla consisting of the Huludao, the Yichang and the Zheng He
affiliated with a training ship detachment of the PLA Navy recently
carried out a maritime combat training at an undisclosed location, China
Bugle, an official media account affiliated with the PLA news media
center, reported on Wednesday.
Unlike the Zheng He, which was
specifically designed as a training ship, the Huludao and the Yichang
were originally combat-focused Type 053H3 frigates, according to media
reports.
The reassignment of the Type 053H3 frigates to a
training ship detachment reflects China's ongoing naval modernization,
as the older Type 053 series being replaced by more advanced Type 054A
and Type 054B frigates, Song Zhongping, a Chinese military affairs
expert, told the Global Times on Wednesday.
The Type 053 series
frigates, just like the Type 051 series destroyers, once played vital
roles in safeguarding China's sovereignty and maritime interests.
However, with China's advancements in military technology, these vessels
are now nearing the end of their operational lifespan, Song said.
Although
the Type 053H3 is no longer among the PLA Navy's most advanced
warships, it still serves an important role in training new naval
officers and sailors, Song said.
The latest exercise involving
the two veteran vessels assessed the crew's command skills, navigation
abilities and emergency response readiness. Training drills included
live-fire shooting, maritime replenishment, damage control support for
other vessels and ship towing, according to the China Bugle report.
Since
the Type 053H3 was designed to be a combat vessel, trainings on this
type of ship should be closer to real combat, Song said, noting that the
vessel could serve as a good training platform for naval cadets, who
will eventually sail with more advanced warships.
On January 22,
the PLA Navy commissioned its first Type 054B frigate, the Luohe, at a
naval port in Qingdao, East China's Shandong Province, the Xinhua News
Agency reported.
With the hull number 545 and a displacement of
about 5,000 tons, the Luohe is a new generation of frigate independently
developed and built by China. It has made breakthroughs in vessel
stealth technology, combat command systems and firepower integrated
control, among other aspects, significantly enhancing its performances,
said Xinhua.
After just a little more than a month, the Luohe
made its training debut in the Yellow Sea with a China Central
Television report in mid-March, with an expert describing the rapid
development of the warship's capabilities as astounding and predicting
it would become combat-ready soon.
JiangHu V Class FFG, Two-Point-O.
Recent pictures reveal that several upgrades have been completed on the
last batch of Type 053H1G FFG (also known as Jianghu V class) that
entered service in the 1990s with the South Sea Fleet. Those upgrades
are suggesting that all six Jianghu V class FFGs will remain in service
with the PLAN for the foreseeable future.
The latest improvements include new air-search and fire-control radars,
new twin 100mm main gun turrets to replace the old models, the addition
of 37mm CIWS mounts, and the replacement of Silkworms with YJ-83
anti-ship missiles.
The reasoning behind the latest upgrade of a rather obsolete class of
frigates has been the subject of speculation on CDF. Some suggest that
recent upgrades signify the immaturity of newer vessels' design, while
others argue that even though the 053 is obsolete, it remains a
cost-effective and potent platform against weaker potential rivals in
the South China Sea. This author is highly skeptical of the "technology
immaturity" speculation; the rapid pace of 054A construction should have
erased any doubt by now about the "maturity" of the PLAN's new
generation of FFGs. The latter speculation is a far more likely
possibility. The commitment of modern surface combatants to the Gulf of
Aden and the uptick in regional maritime disputes has increased the
necessity for a stop-gap measure for effective littoral patrol until the
new Type 056 corvettes enter service. *
-- Mr. Unknown
* With special thanks to duskylim
* FFG558 Zigong pre-upgrade
* FFG558 Zigong post-upgrade
* FFG559 Beihai pre-upgrade
* FFG559 Beihai post-upgrade
* FFG560 Dongguan pre-upgrade
* FFG560 Dongguan post-upgrade
* FFG561 Shantou pre-upgrade
* FFG561 Shantou post-upgrade
* FFG562 Jiangmen pre-upgrade
* FFG562 Jiangmen post-upgrade
* FFG563 Foshan pre-upgrade
* FFG563 Foshan post-upgrade
