[Military & Weapon Subspace] Author: Lele

On the eve of the tumultuous year 2025, the West discovered that a northern Chinese shipyard once again showcased the "four Type 055s and two Type 052Ds" scene, which was indeed full of significance. After all, the gathering of six advanced air defense destroyers is even more impressive than the previous "one dock five ships," which can be considered a harvest. The rare scenario of having more Type 055s than Type 052Ds also hinted at the future of both.

▲The outside world has long seen the magnificent sight after commissioning

Around 2010, based on the experience of building and using the Type 052C, construction of the Type 052 series target ship, Type 052D, began. This was also the first time in naval history that China built world-class indigenous destroyers. In just over a decade, a total of 25 Type 052Ds were launched in two batches, rapidly improving the domestic shortage of air defense destroyers. They also demonstrated the performance of this 7,000-ton warship through the platform of escort missions in the Gulf of Aden. Rumors such as "Russian public opinion believes that Type 052DE should be purchased from China" and "Saudi Arabia plans to buy 12 Type 052DEs" may have various problems, but it cannot be denied that this is the first time that indigenous destroyers have enjoyed such treatment.

▲Early Type 052C can only be considered a transitional model

Technically speaking, by the time the 25th Type 052D was launched, this originally 4,000-ton platform had nearly exhausted its potential. Various signs also indicated that at that time, the domestic side indeed had the idea of building new destroyers. However, just like how the navy's plan for a "steam catapult aircraft carrier" after Liaoning became Shandong, simply because the navy chose the latter between technical risks and mature combat capability, the unexpected appearance of the third batch of Type 052Ds was also to ensure immediate combat effectiveness. Judging from the 27th Type 052D already in service, this sub-model, known as the "Type 052DM" by the outside world, has not undergone significant upgrades; it is a typical operation of making minor adjustments to avoid risks and ensure construction speed.

▲Type 052D truly brought out the platform's full potential

In comparison, after the first batch of eight Type 055s were completed and commissioned, and the second batch of eight Type 055s was constructed, the technological enhancement was also lower than expected. Specifically, it's similar to the situation with the "Type 052DM." This is unreasonable. The navy’s bold decision to begin constructing Type 055 in 2014, especially by building eight entirely new models at once, showed the domestic confidence in Type 055. However, as Type 055 repeatedly appeared before the public, people could see that there were still some imperfections in Type 055. According to common sense, these shortcomings would gradually be corrected in subsequent batches. However, the current second batch of Type 055s has not made significant corrections.

▲Type 055 is superb in performance, but there are many areas where it can be improved

If we also consider the Type 054A, which was believed to have been completed but has added another batch, the purpose of this naval construction wave is now clear — expanding further based on mature platforms to meet the navy's needs for warships. In other words, this time, domestic requirements for performance are not high; the biggest goal is speed and stability. Now, seeing four Type 055s and two Type 052Ds coexisting in one place, each at different stages of construction, is quite spectacular. But given the speed of domestic shipyards, there will definitely be scenes surpassing this in the future.

▲An imposing fleet of Type 055s is crucial for the navy

The emergence of Shandong was unexpected for many, but after the accumulation of Shandong, the follow-up Fujian reached an extraordinary height. The low progress of "Type 052DM" and the second batch of Type 055s is indeed minimal, but referring to the development process of domestic aircraft carriers, after this round of immediate combat readiness is in service, it will be the true explosion era for indigenous destroyers and frigates. Whether it's the further upgraded "Type 055B," the next-generation main destroyer platform replacing Type 052D, or the mass production model based on the corrected initial Type 054B, these are the target ship types planned by the navy, truly used to cooperate with domestic aircraft carriers and dominate the oceans.

▲Aircraft carriers require a large number of escort vessels

The order of eight Type 055s plus ten "Type 052DMs" was placed by the navy several years ago after assessing the situation, which proved to be a very wise decision. Especially after the outstanding performance of the first batch of Type 055s, the rapid deployment of eight Type 055s doubled their scale, which is particularly valuable.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7496334597040308748/

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