Royal Thai Navy (RTN) ceremonially welcomed its new Type 071E class LPD with a ceremony held in Sattahip Naval Base in southern Thailand on 25 April 2023 afternoon. The Commander of the Thai Navy attended the ceremony as the chief guest. Royal Thai Navy ships and naval air assets accompanied HTMS Chang while entering the Sattahip Naval Base during the ceremony.
After the official handover of the LPD in China State Shipbuilding Corp., HTMS Chang departed Shangai on April 18, 2023, and arrived in Thailand at 3:45 p.m. on April 25, 2023.
Thailand signed a contract with China for the procurement of a Type 071E landing platform dock (LPD) on September 9, 2019. The amphibious vessel is based on the Type 071. The deal was reported to cost only Bt6.1 billion (200 million USD). HTMS Chang was launched in December 2021, and completed the sea trials in December 2022.
The vessel is known as HTMS Chang (III)” ‘ช้าง’ means ‘elephant’ but it is also the name of an island in Thailand where a major Royal Thai Navy battle took place. The Battle of Ko Chang took place on 17 January 1941. Thai Navy Landing ships and auxiliary ships are named after Islands of Thailand and Type 071E “HTMS Chang (III)” is the third ship to bear this name.
The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) currently has eight vessels of the Type 071 class commissioned in its fleet. Thailand is the first export customer of the class.
Originally designed after the 1996 Taiwan Strait crisis, Type 071 is 210 meters long and 28 meters wide. She has a displacement of 25.000 tonnes and has a maximum speed of 25 knots. The ship is fitted with two large hangars and a flight deck, where two Z-8J helicopters can be operated simultaneously. The ship is fitted with one 76 mm gun and four 30 mm close-in weapon systems.
According to the press release of the Royal Thai Navy, the new LPD is capable to deploy;
- 8 Amphibious Vehicles (AAVs) or 11 Wheeled Armored Vehicles (MBTs) on Vehicle Deck 1
- 8 Amphibious Vehicles (AAVs) or 9 Wheeled Armored Vehicles (MBTs) on Vehicle Deck 2
- 6 medium-sized aircraft carriers (LCM), or 9 small aircraft carriers (LCVP), or 57 amphibious vehicles (AAVs), or 2 air-cushioned vehicles (LCAC) on Floating docks
- Can land up to 600 troops
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April 26, 2023 at 03:36PM
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Royal Thai Navy welcomes new Type 071E LPD HTMS Chang - Naval News
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