- Yes
- No
TL;DR:
Coastal vessel, very fast torpedo boat, like the 123K A-11 with a forward gun.
History:
The 025 and 026 torpedo boats, collectively known as the Huchuan-class, were developed by the PLAN in the 1960s to replace their Soviet Pr.123K and Pr.183 torpedo boats. They are broadly speaking a modified version of the Soviet prototype Project 184 hydrofoil, and they have the distinction of being the first hydrofoil warships to be mass-produced. They were designed by the 701 Research Institute and the first prototype was built in 1964, and a few hundred boats were built with production lasting until the 1980s or 90s. Like most other small boats, they lack names. Quite a few boats were exported to various friendly nations like Albania and Pakistan, most have been retired by the 2010s. A few of them appear to still be in service with the PLAN for training purposes. They are equipped with Chinese versions of Soviet systems and weapons, namely the KPV MG and the Type 53 torpedo.
The Type 026 is a variant of the Type 025, the main differences being that it is made out of steel rather than aluminium, and it has the gun mounts fore and aft instead of both aft. The first Type 026 boat was delivered in 1967, but soon after development was started to improve the design further. This design became the Type 026II. It is 1 metre longer and has a different hydrofoil design, though dissatisfactory test results lead to early production boats being built without the hydrofoil until a better one was developed. Both the Type 026 and 026II were produced concurrently. Additionally there is another variant of the Type 026, the Type 026H, a patrol boat with a larger superstructure and single gun mount, which sees use in the Hong Kong Border Guard.
Specifications:
Armament:
2x2 14.5mm/93 Type 69
2x1 533mm Torpedo (Yu-1, later versions were acoustic homing)
4x1 DCsDisplacement:
39 tons standard
46 tons fullLength: 21.8m
Beam: 6.3m
Draft: 1.5m
Propulsion: 3 M-50F diesel engines, 3300 hp, driving 3 shafts
Speed: 50 knots (92.6 km/h)
Range: 486 nmi (30 knots)
Crew: 11-16
Systems:
Type 756 radar
Images:
Sources:
https://web.archive.org/web/20170409151633/http://www.haijun360.com/news/YLT/2011/527/1152720251115F1K406F60DDEB32C7C.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130911050858/http://haijun360.com/news/XGBD/2013/628/13628103529GI8B2A5JAI8K9503FBD2.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20171211041204/http://www.haijun360.com/news/YLT/2011/527/1152721049GADCE096C0D30HJ772C4.html
https://www.navypedia.org/ships/china/ch_cf_no205.htm
https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/china/huchuan.htm