The Weinan, a Type 052D guided missile destroyer affiliated with the navy of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command, conducts multi-course training exercises across multiple sea regions in 2025. Photo: Screenshot from WeChat account of the PLA Southern Theater Command

According to an official release, a newly upgraded version of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy's Type 052D destroyer was featured in recent training exercises, with an expert saying on Monday that a new radar, visually similar with the one used on the latest Type 054B frigate, could grant the Type 052D destroyer even stronger search and tracking capabilities.

Over the past few days, a training center and a destroyer detachment affiliated with the navy of the PLA Southern Theater Command organized multiple warships including the Weinan and the Yulin for exercises. The exercises spanned multiple sea regions and aimed to test formation-level coordination and the decision-making capabilities of commanding officers, the PLA Southern Theater Command said in a WeChat post on Monday.

During the drills, the formation encountered a simulated hostile unmanned vessel, with the Weinan detecting the target with its radar and destroying it using its main gun, according to the release.

In another drill focused on coastal target engagement, the Weinan used shipborne drones to calibrate target coordinates. It then relayed the data to the formation, enabling concentrated fire on simulated hostile coastal positions.

Photos attached to the release shows that the Weinan is a Type 052D guided missile destroyer. But unlike previous Type 052D destroyers that have spherical domes to house radars on their main masts, the Weinan is equipped with a dual-face radar resembling that of the PLA Navy's newly commissioned Type 054B guided missile frigate.

The new radar suggests that the Weinan could be a new modified version of the Type 052D destroyer, Fu Qianshao, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Monday. He said that this type of radar is likely a type of dual-face rotating active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, which offers substantial improvements compared with the original radar found on previous Type 052Ds.

Similar radar technologies first appeared on the Type 054B frigate, Fu noted. The new system is expected to be able to detect and track aerial and maritime targets from farther distances, including stealth targets, the expert said.

This is not the first upgrade to the Type 052D. In April, China Central Television (CCTV) reported that a modified version featured an aft-mounted radar for extended early warning range, a larger helicopter deck to host more types of helicopters, and an upgraded vertical launch system capable of firing more missile types.

Fu said that the foundational design of the Type 052D is outstanding, with a moderate displacement that is suitable for both coastal and far seas operations as well as strong all-around capabilities for air defense, anti-ship and anti-submarine tasks. 

These attributes make the Type 052D a highly cost-effective guided missile destroyer, which has become a mainstay of the PLA Navy with mass production and continuous upgrades, Fu said.