Type 635 hydrographic survey ship


Type 635 hydrographic survey ship is a series of hydrographic survey ships developed by China for its People's Liberation Army Navy. Type 635 series in PLAN service are designated by a combination of two Chinese characters followed by three-digit number. The second Chinese character is Ce, meaning survey in Chinese, because these ships are classified as survey ship. The first Chinese character denotes which fleet the ship is service with, with East for East Sea Fleet, North for North Sea Fleet, and South for South Sea Fleet. However, pennant numbers may have changed due to the change of Chinese naval ships naming convention.

Type 635A/B/C

Type 635 A/B/C series with NATO reporting name Yanlai class is the first batch of the Type 635 series. These ships are sometimes collectively known as Type 635I, because the difference between these models are relatively minor in comparison to the second batch. These ships differ from second batch in that the deck at the stern is circular shaped and they are purely for surveying missions. Construction of the first ship begun in 1970 and some modification was made to the second ship, which was designated as Type 635B, and the first ship was subsequently designated as Type 635A. In 1976, based on the experienced gained from deployment, PLAN required further upgrade of Type 635B and these ships are designated as Type 635C. Design was completed in Jun 1977 and construction for both ships begun simultaneously in October of the same year, and they entered service respectively in 1982 and 1983. Type 635C actually developed later than Type 635II, and they are built by Jiangxi Ruichang Jiangzhou Shipyard, a division of Specification:
Type 635II is the development of Type 635A/B, and differs from its predecessor in that in addition to hydrographic survey missions, Type 635II is also capable of carrying out ASW and mine laying missions. To carry out these combat missions, additional armament was added. The most obvious visual external difference between Type 635A/B/C and Type 635 II is that the deck at the stern of Type 635II is in rectangular shape, instead of the circular shape of that of Type 635I. Construction begun in 1970, but due to political turmoil in China, namely, Cultural Revolution, it was not half a decade later was the ship finally delivered. Specification:
TypePennant #BuilderLaid downCommissionedStatusFleet
635ABei-Ce 943Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard―Jan 1970ActiveNorth Sea Fleet
635BDong-Ce 227Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard―1972ActiveEast Sea Fleet
635CDong-Ce 226Oct 1977Feb 1982ActiveEast Sea Fleet
635CNan-Ce 427Oct 1977Jan 1983ActiveSouth Sea Fleet
635IINan-Ce 420Guangzhou Shipyard InternationalDec 1970Nov 1975ActiveSouth Sea Fleet