Name Shanghai I & II class | In commission 1950s-1990s | |
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Operators People's Liberation Army Navy Preceded by Shantou & Huangpu classes Succeeded by Type 062I (Shanghai III class) Subclasses Shanghai I-class gunboat
Shanghai II-class gunboat | ||
The Type 062 gunboat is a class of gunboat of the People's Liberation Army Navy. This unsophisticated class is relatively well-armed for its size and is the most widely built and exported Chinese naval vessel in terms of numbers.
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Type 062 gunboat
The Type 062 gunboat (NATO reporting name: Shanghai I & II class), is a family of gunboats built to replace the preceding Shantou and Huangpu-class gunboats.
During the late 1950s, the PLAN found they needed a more powerful gunboat, as the 50-80-ton class Shantou and Huangpu-class gunboats were too small and lacked both firepower and endurance. Several prototypes are built by different shipyards. They were the Type 0105 from Luda (3), the Type 0108 from Qingdao (1), the Type 0109 from Shanghai (10), and the Type 0110 from Guangzhou (3). Displacement of the prototypes varied from 100-150 t, speed varied from 28–30 knots (52–56 km/h; 32–35 mph), with different weapon arrangements including 57IIx1, 37IIx1, 14.5IIx2 or 37IIx2,14.5IIx2. In 1960, a hybrid of all the prototypes, Type 0111 was laid down at Dalian shipyard, Luda. Full production variants became known as the Type 062-class.
A total of 30 were built, initial boats being known as the Shanghai I class and later slightly improved boats being known as the Shanghai II class. Some boats even remained in active service well into the early 1990s. The Shanghai I class was slightly smaller than its successor, the Shanghai II class, displacing 125 tons instead of 135 tons, and had a twin Chinese Type 66 57 mm gun mount forward. All other specifications are identical to the Shanghai II class, which replaced the 57 mm with twin 37 mm gun mounts.
The L-12V-180 diesel engines used on the Type 062 were prone to overheat, thirsty for fuel and had a poor working life. So the smaller L-12D-6 diesel engine was introduced. The new engine was more fuel efficient and had longer life, but rated only 910 horsepower (680 kW), resulting in a maximum speed of only 28.5 knots (52.8 km/h; 32.8 mph). The low speed disappointed PLAN and thus one of the reason construction ended at 30 boats.
Exports
A number have been exported to foreign customers, with most still remaining in service:
Albania
Bangladesh
Democratic Republic of Congo
Egypt
North Korea
Pakistan
Sierra Leone
Sri Lanka
East Timor
Fushun-class minesweeper
The Fushun-class minesweeper was developed from Shanghai II-class gunboat. This minesweeper version had reduced armament, with mine-sweeping gear replacing some of the weapons. All other characteristics of this class are identical to the Shanghai II class, and all of 20 units were transferred to the reserves, subordinated to the naval militia for training purposes. As of 2015 they have all been mothballed.
Type 062I-class gunboat
The Type 062I-class gunboat (NATO: Shanghai III class), is the successor of the original Type 062 Shanghai I & II-class gunboats of the People's Liberation Army Navy. The Shanghai III-class gunboat is more heavily armed than its predecessor, with the 23 mm guns replacing the 14.5 mm heavy machine guns and is also substantially larger at 170 tons. Significantly more Shanghai III-class gunboats have entered service in foreign navies than in the People's Liberation Army Navy, and the ones in the Chinese inventory are mainly used for training foreign crews, and not all export boats have the same configuration due to different customers' requirements. They are primarily used for coastal and inland patrol.
Haizhui-class submarine chaser
The Haizhui-class submarine chaser is based on the Type 062I-class gunboat and entered service in the early 1960s. It was a stopgap measure as a follow on class to Kronshtadt-class submarine chaser before the arrival of the Type 037 submarine chaser in the mid 1960s. Although Type 062I originated as a gunboat, the submarine chaser version was more successful in serving the People's Liberation Army Navy, actually serving operationally rather than a training vessel for foreign crews. The gunboat version is more successful in export market, however.