Two Type 903s entered service in 2003. Construction of the Type 903A, a slightly modified design, began in 2010; the first Type 903As entered service in 2013.[1]
Development
According to Zhang Gang, chief designer of Similan, China started development of a new AOR in 1988. Development was delayed due to cost, leading China to buy a Komandarm Fedko-class oiler, renamed Qinghaihu, from Ukraine in 1992. The new design was completed for Similan, which became the basis for the Type 903.[4]
Design
The Type 903 is a flush-decked development of the Type 905 AOR resembling the French Durance.[5]
There are two liquid and one sliding-stay solid transfer stations per side. Refuelling may also be conducted from the stern.[5]
Sheldon-Duplaix, Alexandre (2017). "China's Auxiliary Fleet: Supporting a Blue-Water Navy in the Far Seas?". China's Evolving Surface Fleet. CSMI Red Book. Vol. 14. United States Naval War College. ISBN978-1-935352-45-7.
Wertheim, Eric (2013). The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World: Their Ships, Aircraft, and Systems (16 ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN978-1591149545.