A Chinese military magazine earlier this month described a civilian cargo ship as a “containerised destroyer” able to carry missile launchers and hide in commercial shipping lanes, with firepower matching the People's Liberation Army's Type 052D destroyers, according to South China Morning Post.
An article in Ordnance Industry Science Technology earlier this month referred to the civilian cargo ship as a “containerised destroyer”, noting its firepower matched that of the People's Liberation Army’s Type 052D destroyers.
The vessel is around 97 metres (318 feet) long with a displacement of about 9,000 tonnes and a top speed of roughly 20 knots, or about 37km/h (23mph).
Its deck is loaded with 15 standard shipping containers, each housing four vertical launch systems (VLS) identical to those found on Type 052D and Type 055 destroyers.
In total, the vessel carries 60 VLS cells, capable of launching HHQ-9B and HHQ-9C surface-to-air missiles, YJ-18 anti-ship missiles and CJ-10 cruise missiles, as detailed by the magazine.
