Royal Thai Navy Announces Navantia, Spain, as Winner of HTMS Chang Type 071ET LPD Amphibious Dock Capability Enhancement Project

25 Februari 2025

HTMS Chang (III) Landing Platform Dock (photos: Royal Thai Navy)

The official website of the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) in the section on the publication of the agency's procurement projects issued a document on February 21, 2025 regarding the announcement of the winner of the bidding for the project to purchase combat management systems, surveillance systems, fire control systems, weapons systems, and gyro systems, along with related support equipment.

For the project to enhance the combat system capability for naval operations of the floating landing craft, HTMS Chang (III), 1 system, by selection method, budget 909,500,000 baht ($27,100,718), the selected company is Navantia SA, SME, a Spanish shipbuilding industry state enterprise.

The release of the winning document for the project to enhance the combat system capability of the HTMS Chang (3rd) floating dock landing craft is consistent with Thai media reports in August 2024 that the Spanish company Navantia was the winner.

This is the latest success of Navantia Spain with the Royal Thai Navy in 28 years. It is understood that the main weapon system to be procured is the CATIZ Combat Management System (CMS) which is a product of Navantia.

Related systems likely to be procured include Navantia's DORNA Fire Control System (FCS) and two SENTINEL 30 Naval Remote Controlled Weapon Stations (RCWS) from Spain's EM&E Group to supplement the weapons already installed on the third amphibious landing craft, HTMS Chang.

There are four M2 .50cal heavy machine guns on the port side and starboard side of the ship and two Oerlikon GAM-CO1 20mm machine guns on the port side and right side in front of the ship's bridge. EM&E Group has been contracted by the Royal Thai Navy to deliver the SENTINEL 30 RCWS naval gun mounts for the two T.997 series coastal patrol vessels, namely T.997 and T.998.

It is not yet clear whether a secondary contract for the 3rd HTMS Chang (IFF) combat capability enhancement program will be announced, which includes the TSA3521 Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) system and the TopAxyz gyro system from Thales Nederland BV of the Netherlands.

Israeli Elbit Naval Systems' Spectro XR Electro-Optronic (EO) camera and Sweden's SAAB AB's Sea Giraffe 1X 3D surveillance radar are interconnected with Spain's Navantia CATIZ CMS combat management system via an open architecture.

Type 071 LPD (photo: news.qq)

After the installation of the combat system and weapons in the first phase of the upgrade, it is also understood that one 76mm naval gun, which is likely to be a Leonardo 76/62 family naval gun from the Italian company Leonardo SpA, as well as four decoy launchers, will be approved for the second phase of the upgrade in the following fiscal year, around fiscal year 2026.

It was also reported that the Spanish CATIZ CMS combat management system was selected to upgrade the capabilities of two HTMS Pattani-class offshore patrol vessels, HTMS Pattani and HTMS Narathiwat (although there have been rumors on Thai social media recently that the HTMS Pattani-class offshore patrol vessel project is having internal problems).

Type 071ET LPD (Landing Platform Dock) HTMS Chang (III) in service with the Amphibious and Combat Support Service Squadron (ACSSS) of the Royal Thai Navy (RTF) is the export version of the Type 071 amphibious landing platform dock of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).

Built by the Shanghai Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group(HZ) shipyard, a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation(CSSC), a Chinese state-owned shipbuilder, it was delivered to the Royal Thai Navy in 2023 and has been continuously deployed, most recently with the large landing craft of HTMS Sichang-class, HTMS Surin-class, and frigates of HTMS Chao Phraya-class and HTMS Bangpakong-class in the maritime training fleet of the Naval Rating School (NRS) for the academic year 2025 in February 2025.

(AAG)