The Type 054 has a stealthy hull design with sloped surfaces, radar absorbent materials, and a reduced superstructure clutter.
The main anti-ship armament were YJ-83 sea-skimming anti-ship cruise missiles in two four-cell launchers. It retained the HQ-7 SAM, an improved version of the French Crotale, from the preceding Type 053H3; the HQ-7 had a ready-to-fire 8-cell launcher, with 16 stored in the automatic reloader. Short range defence was improved with four AK-630 CIWS turrets. A 100 mm main gun, also based on a French design, was mounted.
Both ships were powered by four CODAD Type 16 PA6 STC marine diesel engines designed by SEMT Pielstick, each generating 6,330 hp. Licenses for the engines were sold to China in April 2002, where they were built by the Shaanxi Diesel Engine Factory. Other reports claimed each ship was powered by two (or four) Type 16 PA STC and two MTU 20V 956TB92 diesels.
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders: | Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard Huangpu Shipyard |
| Operators: |  People's Liberation Army Navy |
| Preceded by: | Type 053H3 frigate |
| Succeeded by: | Type 054A frigate |
| Completed: | 2 |
| Active: | Ma'anshan Wenzhou |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Frigate |
| Displacement: | 4,300 tons (full) |
| Length: | 134 m (440 ft)(CCTV) |
| Beam: | 16 m (52 ft) (CCTV) |
| Propulsion: | CODAD 4 x SEMT Pielstick 16 PA6 STC diesels, 5700 kW (7600+ hp @ 1084 rpm) each |
| Speed: | 27 kn (50 km/h) estimated |
| Range: | 8,025 nautical miles (14,900 km) estimated |
| Sensors and processing systems: | Type 363S (Thomson-CSF DRBV-15 Sea Tiger) 2D air/surface search radar, E/F band |
| Electronic warfare and decoys: | Type 922-1 radar warning receiver |
| Armament: | 2 x 4-cell YJ-83 (C-803) anti-ship missiles |
| Aircraft carried: | 1 Kamov Ka-28 'Helix' or Harbin Z-9C |
| Aviation facilities: | hangar |
