Chinese Navy has commissioned Type 056 Jiangdao-Class Corvette 625 Bazhong.

According to the Twitter account Loongnaval, the Chinese navy has commissioned Type 056 Jiangdao-Class Corvette 625 Bazhong on November 5, 2019. The Type 056 is a class of corvette deployed by the Chinese People's Liberation Navy (PLAN).

Chinese Navy Type 056 Jiangdao-Class Corvette 625 Bazhong. (Picture source Twitter account Loongnaval)

The first Type 056 corvette entered service in February 2013 with the Chinese Navy. The Type 056 hull may have been based on the Pattani-class offshore patrol vessels, which were built in China for Thailand from 2005 to 2006.

he Type 056 is suited for mid-range missions and littoral duties, but not for major blue-water combat operations; it is built with a 15-day endurance for combat missions such as patrol, escort and protection of EEZ maritime interests within 200 nmi (370 km) from the coast, freeing up larger warships for open ocean deployment.

The Tye 056 Corvette has a length of 89m, beam of 11.6m and maximum draft of 4.4m. The full load displacement of the warship is 1,365t and it has a crew capacity of 60 sailors.

The Type 056 Corvette is armed with a AK-176 76 mm. gun, two 30 mm. cannon, and four YJ-83 anti-ship missiles. FL-3000N surface-to-air missiles are carried in a single eight-cell launcher. Armament also includes two triple-tube 324 mm. torpedo launchers using Yu-7 light ASW torpedoes.

The basic Type 056 is equipped with Type 347G (LR66) radar and bow-mounted sonar. The Type 056A adds towed array and variable depth sonars (VDS); the towed body suggests the VDS is "not an exact copy" of either the Italian/US DE-1163 or the French DUBV-43. It is likely that the Chinese will have undertaken extensive trials and analysis of any imported equipment and built a nominally indigenous system using the knowledge gained.

The Type 056 has a helicopter deck for a Z-9-sized helicopter, but no hangar.