Type 906 torpedo trial craft is a Chinese torpedo craft currently in service with the

People's Liberation Army Navy The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN; ), also known as the People's Navy, Chinese Navy, or PLA Navy, is the maritime service branch of the People's Liberation Army. The PLAN traces its lineage to naval units fighting during the Chinese ...

(PLAN), and has received

NATO reporting name NATO reporting names are code names for military equipment from Russia, China, and historically, the Eastern Bloc (Soviet Union and other nations of the Warsaw Pact). They provide unambiguous and easily understood English words in a uniform manne ...

Xiang Yang Hong 9 or 向阳红 9, meaning facing the red sun. After more than three decades of service, the ship still remains active as of mid 2010s. In addition to support torpedo weaponry development, the ship is equipped to perform various research tasks, and thus also classified as general purpose research ship (AGE/AG). Program of Type 906 first begun in October 1981 when the

Commission for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense The Commission for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (COSTIND; Chinese: 国防科学技术工业委员会) was a civilian ministry within the State Council of the People's Republic of China, responsible for setting policy for d ...

(COSTIND) issued the requirement, and the 708th Institute of

China State Shipbuilding Corporation The China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) is a Chinese shipbuilding conglomerate. Description CSSC is one of the top 10 defence groups in China. It consists of various shipyards, equipment manufacturers, research institutes and shipb ...

, which is also more commonly known a
China Shipbuilding and Oceanic Engineering Design Academy (中国船舶及海洋工程设计研究)
nowadays was contracted as the designer. The ship displaces 2,300 tons and took five years and three months to complete. The hull is based on that of

Type 625 research vessel Type 625 oceanographic research ship is a series of oceanographic research ship developed by China for its People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). The series consisted of three models, A, B & C, but A & B are usually grouped together as one because C ...

, and in addition to conducting

sea trial A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a " shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and ...

s for

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

, mine and other underwater weaponry trials, the ship is also tasked to perform missions to test and support acoustic systems such as DMT, PATS, and OCEANO. In addition, the ship is also capable of conducting weather and hydrographic research. named as Kancha (勘查, meaning survey in Chinese) 3, and the complete name was Drone Mine Acoustic Tracking System Work Mother Ship (Ba-Lei Shui-Sheng Gen-Zong Xi-Tong Gong-Zuo Mu-Chuang. 靶雷水声跟踪系统工作母船)

References

{{Ship classes of the Chinese Navy, state=uncollapsed Torpedo boats of the People's Liberation Army Navy Auxiliary ships of the People's Liberation Army Navy Auxiliary training ship classes