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China Commissions Two New Type 055 Destroyers Assigned to Eastern Theater Command Near Taiwan.
China has commissioned two additional Type 055 guided-missile destroyers, Dongguan (Hull 109) and Anqing (Hull 110), bringing the People's Liberation Army Navy’s operational fleet of the advanced warships to ten. Their assignment to the Eastern Theater Command strengthens China’s naval combat capability in the East China Sea and around Taiwan.
On 8 March 2026, Chinese state broadcaster Xinwen Lianbo on China Central Television showed for the first time the Type 055 destroyers Dongguan (Hull 109) and Anqing (Hull 110) conducting joint training at sea, confirming their entry into active service with the People's Liberation Army Navy. The commissioning of these two 10,000-ton-class guided-missile destroyers, formally announced in an official notice on the Ministry of National Defense website, raises the number of operational Type 055s from eight to ten and extends the class’ presence to all three naval theater commands. This development is significant both in capability terms, given the Type 055’s role as a multi-mission, cruiser-scale surface combatant, and in geostrategic terms, as the two ships are assigned to the Eastern Theater Command Navy, the formation responsible for operations in the East China Sea and around Taiwan.
China has commissioned two additional Type 055 guided-missile destroyers, bringing its fleet of the advanced cruiser-scale warships to ten and strengthening naval operations in the East China Sea and around Taiwan (Picture Source: CCTV 13)
With Dongguan and Anqing now in service, the Type 055 class comprises ten active hulls: Nanchang (101), Lhasa (102), Anshan (103), Wuxi (104), Dalian (105), Yan’an (106), Zunyi (107), Xianyang (108), Dongguan (109) and Anqing (110). Chinese media reports, Global Times included, indicate that the first eight ships are distributed between the Northern and Southern Theater Command navies, while the two newest units reinforce the Eastern Theater Command Navy. This means that large destroyers of this class are now available to support carrier and amphibious task groups in all maritime directions: the Bohai and Yellow Seas to the north, the South China Sea to the south, and the East China Sea and Taiwan Strait in the east. According to publicly available data, the program foresees up to 16 ships, with several additional hulls already under construction, making the Type 055 one of the most numerous contemporary large surface combatant classes in Asia.
The Type 055 is a very large multi-mission destroyer, classified as a cruiser by the United States due to its size and command facilities, designed to act as the main air-defense and command node within Chinese surface task groups. The ship is approximately 180 meters long with a beam of about 20 meters and a full-load displacement in the 12,000–13,000-ton range, powered by four QC-280 gas turbines in a COGAG configuration for maximum speeds around 30 knots and a range of roughly 5,000 nautical miles at cruising speed. Its hull and superstructure incorporate a continuous deck line and enclosed forecastle to reduce radar cross-section, while the enclosed integrated mast houses multiple radar arrays, communications systems and electronic warfare equipment.
The core of the Type 055’s combat system is a dual-band radar suite centered on the Type 346B Dragon Eye active electronically scanned array, supplemented by X-band panels and a full set of fire-control, navigation and electronic warfare sensors. This architecture provides long-range surveillance against aircraft, cruise missiles and potentially some ballistic missile profiles, supporting area air-defense missions over a wide volume of airspace. Below decks, 112 universal vertical launch system (VLS) cells, 64 forward and 48 aft, can accommodate a mix of HHQ-9 long-range surface-to-air missiles, YJ-18 anti-ship and land-attack cruise missiles, CJ-10 land-attack cruise missiles and missile-delivered anti-submarine weapons such as CY-5 or Yu-8. These are complemented by a single 130 mm main gun, a gun-based close-in weapon system, an HHQ-10 short-range SAM system for point defense, torpedo tubes, and a flight deck and hangar sized for two medium helicopters for anti-submarine and over-the-horizon targeting roles.
Such a weapons and sensor mix allows the Type 055 to undertake a broad spectrum of missions. In peacetime and crisis, the ships provide long-range air-defense coverage and command-and-control for carrier strike groups and large surface action groups, acting as the principal node for air and missile defense. In high-intensity scenarios, their VLS magazine enables layered air-defense with HHQ-9, sea-control operations through YJ-18 anti-ship strikes, land-attack missions using CJ-10 or similar missiles against coastal and infrastructure targets, and anti-submarine warfare using rocket-delivered torpedoes and embarked helicopters. Chinese state media have also reported trials of an anti-ship ballistic missile, designated YJ-20, from a Type 055 platform, indicating that the class may in future serve as a sea-based launcher for very long-range anti-ship weapons. If such capabilities are fielded operationally across the class, they would give the ships a role in long-range maritime denial beyond the range of conventional cruise missiles.
The Type 055 has already been present in a variety of roles since the first-of-class Nanchang entered service in 2020, including carrier-escort missions, blue-water deployments into the western Pacific, and exercises in the South China Sea featuring air-defense, anti-missile and sea-strike training. The new hulls, Dongguan and Anqing, appear to be following the same pattern: their first public appearance showed them integrated into a larger surface formation, rather than operating alone, suggesting that they are being introduced directly into combined task-group training rather than isolated shakedown cruises. As the fleet grows, it becomes feasible for the PLA Navy to assign at least one Type 055 to each major carrier group while still retaining hulls for independent surface action groups and long-range anti-submarine patrols.
Basing Dongguan and Anqing in the Eastern Theater Command Navy has clear implications for operations in the East China Sea and around Taiwan. This theater is responsible for contingencies involving Taiwan and for managing interactions with the navies of Japan and the United States in nearby waters. The addition of two large destroyers with 112-cell VLS magazines substantially increases the theater’s capacity for area air-defense, anti-ship warfare and long-range land attack from the sea. In practical terms, this means that Eastern Theater Command surface groups can deploy more layered air-defense umbrellas over amphibious shipping, aircraft carriers or key sea lines of communication, while also having organic capacity to hold distant naval and shore targets at risk. When combined with the theater’s existing Type 052D destroyers and newer frigates and corvettes, the Type 055s become the high-end centerpiece of a more complex and resilient air-sea defense network.
The expansion of the Type 055 fleet to all three theater commands underlines the transformation of the PLA Navy from a primarily near-sea defensive force into a blue-water navy able to project power and provide air-sea coverage well beyond the so-called first island chain. The presence of large, multi-mission surface combatants with strong command-and-control capabilities in the Eastern Theater complements similar capabilities in the Northern and Southern theaters, enabling simultaneous high-end operations in the Yellow, East and South China Seas and into the western Pacific and Indian oceans. For neighboring states and extra-regional navies, the growing number of these ships is likely to be factored into planning for air and missile defense, anti-surface warfare and crisis-management mechanisms, particularly in areas where multiple navies operate in close proximity.
More broadly, the Dongguan and Anqing commissions demonstrate that the Type 055 program is maturing into a serially produced backbone of China’s surface fleet, rather than an isolated high-end prototype. With ten ships already in service and additional hulls being outfitted or built, the PLA Navy is accumulating a sizeable inventory of large surface combatants capable of functioning as carrier escorts, air-defense flagships, land-attack platforms and maritime security assets in distant seas. As these vessels continue to train and deploy from all three theater commands, their presence will shape operational patterns and planning across the wider region, making the evolution of their equipment fit, training focus and deployment profiles a key indicator for observers following the future of naval balance and maritime security in the Indo-Pacific.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.