168 Guangzhou
169 Wuhan

In 2002, Shanghai-based Jiangnan Shipyard launched two type 052B (Guangzhou class) multirole missile destroyers which were much more modern and heavily armed than anything the Chinese had indegenously produced to that date. With a mixture of Chinese and Russian weapons and sensor technology, the vessels are directed at essentially the same role as the four Sovremenny destroyers the PRC has purchased from Russia and represent a statement by the PRC that the PLAN is now capable of producing its own such vessels indegenously and melding them with whatever weapons and sensor systms necessary.

Armed with 48 9M317 Shtil missiles (Nato code name SA-N-12 Grizzly) and 16 YJ-83 surface to surface missiles with a range of 150 kilomters and a terminal approach at Mach 1.5, the vessels are well suited for sea control tasks while defending themselves and other vessels they are operating with against air or missile attack.

The vessels each carry a KA-28 ASW helicopter and come armed with six torpedo tubes and four 18 barrel launchers for anti-submarine rocket bombardment or chaff.

These were the first PLAN vessels aremed with the a close-in-weapons systems and have set the example for other future ships like the Type-052C DDG, the Type-054(a) FFgs, and the new Type-071 LPD. The Guangszhou is armed with two 30mm Type-730 CIWS.

The 100 mm main gun was developed in China by 713 Institute and based on the French Creusot-Loire T100C design. The gun is a dual puprose gun and can be used in the surface attack or air attack mode with a maximum fire rate of 90 rounds/min. It can be operated in automatic mode from the radar control system or manually.