Not to be confused with Type 917 rescue and salvage ship.
| Career (PRC) |  |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | Late 1980s |
| Awarded: | Early 1990s |
| Builder: | 4 different shipyards |
| Laid down: | Since early 1990s |
| Launched: | Since early 1990s |
| Commissioned: | Early 1990s to 2007 |
| Maiden voyage: | Early 1990s |
| In service: | Since early 1990s |
| Status: | Active |
| Class overview | |
| Operators: |
 People's Liberation Army Navy |
| Preceded by: | Type 803 torpedo retriever |
| Succeeded by: | Dachou class torpedo retriever/target ship |
| Built: | Early 1990s to 2007 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | Damen |
| Type: | Range support vessel / target ship (AGT) / Torpedo retriever (TR/TWR) |
| Displacement: | 720 t (710 long tons; 790 short tons) |
| Length: | 63.68 m (208 ft 11 in) |
| Beam: | 9 m (29 ft 6 in) |
| Draft: | 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 diesel engines each @ 1,100 bhp (820 kW) |
| Speed: | 13 kn (24 km/h; 15 mph) |
| Sensors and processing systems: | Navigation radar |
| Electronic warfare & decoys: | None |
| Armament: | Small caliber guns |
| Armour: | None |
| Aircraft carried: | None |
| Aviation facilities: | None |
Type 917 torpedo retriever (TR/TWR) / range support vessel / target ship (AGT ) is a type of little known auxiliary ship built in the People's Republic of China (PRC) for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).[1][2][3][4][5] As a successor of earlier Type 803 torpedo retriever, Type 917 TR/TWR/AGT has received NATO reporting name Damen class,[1][2][3][4] or 大门 in Chinese, meaning "big gate". As with its predecessors, once these have retired from their original torpedo retrieving duties, they are converted to range support vessels/target ships,[6] until finally sunk as targets. Specification:[1][2][3][4][5]
- Length: (m): 63.68
- Beam (m): 9
- Draft (m): 2.8
- Standard displacement (t): 720
- Full displacement (t): 742.5
- Speed (kt): 13
- Propulsion: 8300CZ marine diesels @ 1100 hp x 2
Type 917 AGT/TWR/TR in PLAN service is designated by a combination of two Chinese characters followed by a three-digit number. The second Chinese character is Yun (运), meaning "transport" in Chinese, indicating that in addition to range support and targeting missions, this class is also used as transports (AP), though some modification work is required to remove onboard range support and targeting equipment before it can be used to transport cargoes. The first Chinese character denotes which fleet the ship is service with, with East (Dong, 东) for East Sea Fleet, North (Bei, 北) for North Sea Fleet, and South (Nan, 南) for South Sea Fleet. However, the pennant numbers are subject to change due to changes of Chinese naval ships naming convention, or when units are transferred to different fleets. As of 2022, a total of nine ships have been identified:[1][2][3][4]
| Type | NATO designation | Pennant No. | Name (English) |
Name (Han 中文) |
Commissioned | Displacement | Fleet | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type 917 torpedo retriever (TR/TWR) / range support / target ship (AGT) | Damen class | Bei-Yun 455 | North Transport 455 | 北运 455 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | North Sea Fleet | Active |
| Bei-Yun 484 | North Transport 484 | 北运 484 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | North Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Bei-Yun 485 | North Transport 485 | 北运 485 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | North Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Bei-Yun 529 | North Transport 529 | 北运 529 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | North Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Dong-Yun 758 | East Transport 758 | 东运 758 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | East Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Dong-Yun 803 | East Transport 803 | 东运 803 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | East Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Nan-Yun 841 | South Transport 841 | 南运 841 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | South Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Nan-Yun 844 | South Transport 844 | 南运 844 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | South Sea Fleet | Active | ||
| Nan-Yun 854 | South Transport 854 | 南运 854 | 1990s-2007 | 720 t | South Sea Fleet | Active |
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "PLANS recognition guide 2018". July 16, 2018. https://www.andrewerickson.com/2018/07/onis-new-2018-china-recognition-identification-guide-shows-3-different-types-of-maritime-militia-vessels/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "PLANS recognition guide 2019". February 19, 2020. https://www.oni.navy.mil/Portals/12/Intel%20agencies/China_Media/2020_China_Recce_Poster_UNCLAS.jpg?ver=2020-02-19-081430-327.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "PLANS recognition guide 2020". February 19, 2020. https://www.andrewerickson.com/2020/02/office-of-naval-intelligence-just-published-latest-china-russia-maritime-ship-recognition-guides/.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "PLANS recognition guide 2015". August 7, 2015. https://news.usni.org/2015/08/07/document-office-of-naval-intelligence-chinese-military-and-coast-guard-ship-identification-guide.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Type 917 AGT/TWR/TR" (in Zh-hans). April 15, 2013. https://tieba.baidu.com/p/2248655005?pn=14.
- ↑ "Retired torpedo retriever converted to range support/target ship" (in Zh-hans). November 16, 2015. https://www.81.cn/bqtd/2015-11/16/content_6775846.htm.
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The original article can be found at Type 917 torpedo retriever/target ship and the edit history here.