The Haixun 06.Screenshot from youth.cn

The Haixun 06, the first large vessel designated to patrol and provide services in the Taiwan Straits, was officially assigned to the Fujian Maritime Safety Administration on Monday, with Chinese experts noting that the commissioning of the vessel will further improve the level of emergency response to accidents in the region.

The vessel is 128 meters long, 16 meters wide and 7.9 meters deep, with a displacement of 6,600 tons with a full load, a top speed of 23 knots and a cruising range of 10,000 nautical miles, the administration said in a news release.

The vessel can cruise at sea for 60 days without external supplies, and is capable of reaching all the seas in the world except the North and South Poles, it said.  

The Haixun 06 can also conduct far-reaching sea patrols in level 12 winds and level 9 sea state, and carry out maritime law enforcement activities under level 11 winds and level 7 sea state.

 The Haixun 06 is equipped with the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, GPS and multi-satellite linkage satellite communication equipment. The vessel can be used as an independent, mobile maritime administrative law enforcement unit to carry out maritime inspection and supervision, and deal with maritime traffic accidents.

It can also work with communication command vehicles, maritime patrol vehicles, other law enforcement vessels, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, VTS (vessel traffic service), and AIS (automatic identification systems), which is an important part of the construction of a comprehensive supervision and response system, media reported.

Wang Huaming, deputy director of the Fujian Maritime Safety Administration, explained that the number of vessel accidents in the Taiwan Straits accounts for about 10 percent of China's annual total due to heavy traffic, overlapping shipping routes with coastal fishing grounds, thick fog in spring, typhoons in summer and strong winds in winter.

The Haixun 06 is capable of searching for and rescuing ships and people in distress at sea, as well as responding to ship collisions, fire, pollution, loss of control, reef and other dangerous accidents, Wang added.

The biggest function of Haixun 6 is to improve the level of emergency handling of ship accidents in the Taiwan Straits and ensure the smooth flow of the entire maritime transport channel, Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert, told the Global Times on Monday.

Haixun 06 patrols the Taiwan Straits, but is not limited to them, Song said, adding that the object of emergency rescue work is not limited to ships from the Chinese mainland, but also includes ships from the island of Taiwan and other places, which will greatly help emergency rescue management in the entire region.

Maritime patrols are the main function of the Haixun 06, and "professional ships do professional things", the expert noted, adding that the Chinese coast guard and navy will be responsible for dealing with security risks that may arise in this area.

The ship was under construction by China State Shipbuilding Corp's Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry since May 2019, launched in February 2021 and commissioned on Monday, a day which also marks the 18th China National Maritime Day.