China's first Type 054B frigate commissioned

BEIJING, 22 January (BelTA - China Daily) - China commissioned its first Type 054B guided-missile frigate in Qingdao, Shandong province, on Wednesday morning, according to the People's Liberation Army Navy.

The Navy said in a news release that the CNS Luohe was delivered to the North Sea Fleet at a commissioning ceremony at a naval port in Qingdao. Officials from the Navy and the city government of Luohe in Henan province, and representatives from the ship's builder China State Shipbuilding Corp attended the event, it added.

According to the Navy, the Luohe, with a hull number 545, is the first of a new generation of frigate and is an important piece of hardware in the Navy's transformational development.

The Type 054B has a displacement of nearly 5,000 metric tons and has better capabilities than its predecessor Type 054A in all aspects. It features technological breakthroughs in stealth, combat command, firepower control and other functions, and can better conduct naval battles and other missions. Its service will extensively bolster the naval fleet's overall operational ability, the Navy said.

Currently, the Navy's frigate forces mainly consist of the Type 054A ships, which started to be deployed in 2006.