The decommissioning ceremony of the destroyer Harbin Photo: Xinhua China's Type 052 guided-missile destroyer Harbin, hull number 112, often hailed as "China's No. 1 warship" and the lead ship of the country's second generation of domestically built destroyers, was decommissioned on Friday in Qingdao, East China's Shandong Province.

The vessel has accumulated more than 30 years of service, during which it completed over 100 major missions and visited 22 ports in 20 countries, including Russia, the US and Australia, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The Harbin was independently developed and built by China as a second-generation main combat vessel. It was equipped with naval guns, surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles and other weapons systems, and could carry two helicopters. With integrated capabilities for air defense, surface warfare and anti-submarine operations, the ship marked a major leap in the combat capability of the Chinese Navy's surface fleet, Xinhua reported.

The destroyer was launched in August 1991 and entered service with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy in May 1994. Over more than three decades, it remained on the front line of combat readiness and major missions, completing more than 100 major training and readiness tasks and sailing safely for more than 400,000 nautical miles.

The launching ceremony of the Type 052 in 1991 Photo: PLA Navy WeChat account

The PLA Navy on Friday also released an article on its WeChat account, highlighting the Harbin's contributions. It noted that over its 32 years of service, the Harbin made two deployments to the Gulf of Aden, took part in more than 10 joint exercises with Chinese and foreign forces, and completed over 100 major missions.

Its voyages took it across three continents and two oceans, visiting 22 ports in 20 countries. The ship also achieved a number of milestones in the history of the PLA Navy, including becoming the first Chinese naval vessel to cross the Pacific and visit the Americas, and the first to sail beyond the first island chains on a long-distance deployment.

In 1997, the ship visited four countries in the Americas. During the Navy's 14th escort mission in 2013, officers and sailors from the ship were invited to form a marching contingent in Seychelles' national day parade, the first time a PLA Navy marching formation had taken part in a foreign national day parade, according to Xinhua.

Since entering service, the Harbin has taken part in 17 joint naval exercises with foreign navies, and hosted senior military officers from more than 60 countries. In 2003, the Central Military Commission awarded the ship the honorary title of "maritime vanguard ship."

The PLA Navy article noted that looking at their old "comrade-in-arms," the ship's officers and sailors kept waving, reluctant to leave even after a long while. "Although hull 112 has now been decommissioned, the spirit of the maritime vanguard will never retire — and more ships will carry that legacy forward," read the article.

After decommissioning, the vessel will be used as a national defense education base and berthed in Changsha, Central China's Hunan Province, the hometown of Xiao Jinguang, the first commander of the PLA Navy, where it will be open to the public, according to the PLA Navy.

Global Times