Chinese research ship Beidiao 992 is a very little known naval
auxiliary ship
An auxiliary ship is a naval ship designed to support combatant ships and other naval operations. Auxiliary ships are not primary combatant vessels, though they may have some limited combat capacity, usually for purposes of self-defense.
Auxil ...
currently in service with the
People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).
The exact type remain unknown as late 2010s despite years of service,
[ because official governmental information in details has not been released. The ship is mainly used for oceanographic research and it is one of the first ships in Chinese navy that adopts catamaran design.][
Beidiao 992 research ship in PLAN service is designated by a combination of two Chinese characters followed by three-digit number. The second Chinese character is Diao (θ°), meaning research in Chinese, because this ship is an oceanographic research ship. The first Chinese character denotes which fleet the ship is service with, with East (Dong, δΈ) for ]East Sea Fleet
The Eastern Theater Command Navy (), or East Sea Fleet (ESF; ), is one of the three fleets of the People's Liberation Army Navy, operating in the East China Sea under the Eastern Theater Command. It was the first naval force formed by the Peop ...
, North (Bei, ε) for North Sea Fleet, and South (Nan, ε) for South Sea Fleet
The Southern Theater Command Navy (), or the South Sea Fleet (SSF; ) is one of the three fleets of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy, operating in the South China Sea under the Southern Theater Command. It is headquartered in Zhanjiang, ...
.
References
{{Ship classes of the Chinese Navy, state=uncollapsed
Auxiliary ships of the People's Liberation Army Navy