The Type 025 class torpedo boat is also known as Huchuan class, and it was once the backbone of the People's Liberation Army Navy

People's Liberation Army Navy

The People's Liberation Army Navy is the naval branch of the People's Liberation Army , the military of the People's Republic of China. Until the early 1990s, the navy performed a subordinate role to the PLA Land Forces. Since then, it has undergone rapid modernisation...

 in its confrontations with their much larger opponents in the Republic of China Navy

Republic of China Navy

The Republic of China Navy is the maritime branch of the Armed forces of the Republic of China . The ROC Navy's primary mission is to defend ROC territories and the sea lanes that surround Taiwan against a blockade, attack, or possible invasion by forces of the People's Republic of China...

. Although no longer serving as the frontline workhorse, this class is still quite active today. This unsophisticated class has a surprising longevity in the active service thanks to the particular philosophy within the People's Liberation Army Navy

People's Liberation Army Navy

The People's Liberation Army Navy is the naval branch of the People's Liberation Army , the military of the People's Republic of China. Until the early 1990s, the navy performed a subordinate role to the PLA Land Forces. Since then, it has undergone rapid modernisation...

 from which this class has benefited.

Operational doctrine

In an era of the increasingly effective countermeasures

Electronic countermeasures

An electronic countermeasure is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar or other detection systems, like infrared or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting information to an enemy...

 against anti-ship missile

Anti-ship missile

Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing...

s, the countermeasures against torpedo

Torpedo

The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...

es are relatively few and less effective in comparison, so although ineffective in open waters, torpedo boats can still play a role in the coastal defense with sufficient protection, utilizing its stealthiness and high speed for surprise attacks on the ambushed enemy from their hideouts, such as caves, if these boats are integrated into an overall system that includes the supporting C4ISR

C4ISTAR

In military usage, a number of abbreviations in the format C followed by additional letters are used, based on expanded versions of the abbreviation C2 - command and control.C2I stands for command, control, and intelligence....

 structure such as those from shore, aircraft, and larger ships.
As a result of this philosophy, the production of Type 025 class torpedo boats lasted well into the 1990’s, despite the fact that the retirement of early units of this class had already begun in the mid 1980’s.

Variants

This class was originally designed to solve the problem of Soviet torpedo boats in Chinese inventory: the P 4 class torpedo boat (Type K-123) was lightly armed, and thus did not have sufficient self-defense firepower in retreats after torpedoes are launched. The P 6 class torpedo boat (Type K-183) had enough guns for self defense, but the wooden hull was prone to fire after being hit. As a result, Type 025 was developed to utilize the advantage of both classes by adopting the metallic hull of the P 4 class and stronger self defense armament of the P 6 class. There are several versions of Type 025 class torpedo boats which mainly differed in their secondary armament. For example, some had extra guns in addition to the standard 14.5 mm heavy machine gun

Heavy machine gun

The heavy machine gun or HMG is a larger class of machine gun generally recognized to refer to two separate stages of machine gun development. The term was originally used to refer to the early generation of machine guns which came into widespread use in World War I...

s, while others had the capability to carry and lay two additional mines. Due to the different the weapons carried, the complement various from 11 to 16. Structurally, some of the hulls have an additional pair of small hydrofoil

Hydrofoil

A hydrofoil is a foil which operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to airfoils.Hydrofoils can be artificial, such as the rudder or keel on a boat, the diving planes on a submarine, a surfboard fin, or occur naturally, as with fish fins, the flippers of aquatic mammals, the...

near the bow, yet others do not have hydrofoils at all. Most guns are aft but some one forward and one aft. Although small batch orders continued into the 1990’s, the production had completely stopped by the early 2000’s.