The Yueyang, a Type 054A guided-missile frigate of the People's Liberation Army Navy, is participating in the ongoing RIMPAC 2014 joint naval exercise held in Hawaii, and the country is already underway constructing more frigates of the same class, reports the state-run China News Service.The Yueyang is in fact the 14th vessel among its other sister ships. With 575 as its hull number, the vessel was launched on May 10, 2012, and began its sea trials in September of that year before eventually entering the PLA Navy in March, 2013. The Yueyang, like other ships of its class, is designed to provide fleet air defense and can also coordinate with other vessels and naval aircraft in battle against enemy warships and submarines, CNS said.
The PLA Navy's Type 054A guided-missile frigates carry HQ-16 medium-range air defence missiles. Fired from the vertical launching system of a Type 054A frigate, the HQ-16 provides area air defence from all engagement angles up to a range of 50 kilometers. At the same time, the vessel can also launch various anti-submarine rockets and even anti-submarine missiles against enemy submarines.
Like many of its sister ships, the Yueyang was constructed at the Huangpu Shipyard located in Guangzhou in southern China's Guangdong province under the supervision of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation.