Naval Systems

Type 073 / 073A / 073III landing ship

Also known as
  • Type 073 landing ship
  • Type 073II landing ship
  • Type 073III landing ship
  • Type 073A landing ship
  • Yudao-class landing ship
  • Yudeng-class landing ship
  • Yunshu-class landing ship

The Type 073 family is a Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy medium landing ship line that spans the original 1960s Type 073, limited Type 073II/Yudao and Type 073III/Yudeng follow-ons, and the later Type 073A/Yunshu production class. Its most operationally relevant member is the Type 073A, a roughly 87 m LSM class used for amphibious lift, vehicle movement, and near-seas logistics; AMTI/CSIS imagery documented one at Mischief Reef during China's Spratly outpost deployments.

Type 073 / 073A / 073III landing ship, Medium landing ship family, Naval Systems
Image source: Wikimedia Commons File: Two China PLA navy 073A landing ship.jpg

Role in Conflicts

South China Sea Disputes
Mobility & Logistics
Side
People's Republic of China

AMTI/CSIS satellite-imagery reporting identified a Type 073A medium landing ship at Mischief Reef on May 6, 2018, within documented Chinese military deployments to Spratly outposts.

Profile / Specs

Specifications

Type 073 displacement
About 850 tons
Type 073II / Yudao displacement
Open references list about 1,040 to 1,460 tons depending on source and load measure
Type 073II / Yudao lift
About 250 tons of cargo, four Type 59 tanks with troops, six amphibious tanks with troops, or mine cargo
Type 073III / Yudeng
One listed hull, about 1,460 tons standard, 87 m long, 17 knots, and 74 crew
Type 073A / Yunshu displacement
About 1,460 to 1,550 tons standard; about 2,000 tons full load in several public references
Type 073A / Yunshu dimensions
87 m length, 12.6 m beam, about 2.25 to 2.5 m draft
Type 073A / Yunshu speed and range
17 knots; about 1,500 nautical miles at 14 knots
Type 073A / Yunshu lift
Sources variously list six amphibious assault vehicles, 250 tons of cargo, five medium tanks, ten amphibious light tanks, or up to 500 troops
Type 073A / Yunshu propulsion
Two 6PA6-series diesel engines driving two shafts
Type 073A / Yunshu armament
Twin 37 mm gun mounts; some public references also list Type 81H 122 mm rocket launchers
Family Role And Lift

The Type 073 family fills the PLAN medium-landing-ship layer below Type 072 tank landing ships and above smaller utility landing craft. The later Yunshu ships are the clearest current service reference point: open sources list ten active hulls, standard displacement around 1,460 tons, and vehicle lift for amphibious armor or embarked troops.

Current-service center

Type 073A/Yunshu hulls 941-950 are listed as active PLAN medium landing ships commissioned in 2004.

Lift niche

The Naval War College study groups Yunshu with PLAN LSMs and describes the class as smaller than LSTs but capable of supporting amphibious-combat operations.

Adjacent families

For larger and smaller Chinese amphibious lift, compare the Type 072 landing ship family and Type 074 / Type 074A landing ship.

Variants

The Type 073 label covers several related PLAN medium landing ship designs rather than one identical class. The early Type 073 and Type 073II ships were small-production or limited-service designs; the Type 073III/Yudeng served as the bridge to the ten-ship Type 073A/Yunshu class.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
Type 073Original medium landing ship

The original design was assigned to the 708th Research Institute in the 1960s, built at Dalian Shipyard, and represented China's first domestic medium landing ship design; GlobalSecurity lists one Type 073 ship, hull 904.

Sources: GlobalSecurity Type 073 Landing Ship Medium [LSM]

Type 073II / YudaoEarly follow-on landing ship

GlobalSecurity describes the Type 073II/Yudao as an early-1980s follow-on whose planned mass production was curtailed after engine and reliability problems, while the 2024 Naval War College study treats Yudao-class LSMs as removed from active PLAN amphibious-fleet service.

Sources: GlobalSecurity Type 073II Yudao-class medium landing ship, GlobalSecurity Yudao-class specifications, Naval War College Chinese Amphibious Warfare Study

Type 073III / YudengPrototype bridge to Type 073A

Reference sources identify a single Type 073III/Yudeng hull as the intermediate design that preceded the Type 073A/Yunshu production class.

Sources: Military Factory Yunshu (class) / Type 073A, Naval War College Chinese Amphibious Warfare Study

Type 073A / YunshuProduction medium landing ship

SeaForces lists ten Type 073A/Yunshu ships, pennant numbers 941 through 950, commissioned in 2004 and active in PLAN service; the Naval War College study describes the class as the PLAN's slightly larger LSM able to lift at least six light tanks.

Sources: SeaForces Type 073A Yunshu class, Naval War College Chinese Amphibious Warfare Study

Timeline

Type 073 / 073A / 073III landing ship Key Events

  1. Type 073 design code is approved

    GlobalSecurity places General Staff approval of the Type 073 task book in May 1965 and completion of the 708th Research Institute technical design in September 1965.

    Sources: GlobalSecurity Type 073 Landing Ship Medium [LSM]

  2. First Type 073 is delivered

    The first Type 073 hull was built at Dalian Shipyard, launched in 1969, and delivered at the end of that year after a delayed development path.

    Sources: GlobalSecurity Type 073 Landing Ship Medium [LSM]

  3. Type 073II enters naval service

    GlobalSecurity describes Type 073II production beginning in 1976, launch in 1978, trials through 1979, and delivery to the Navy in early 1980.

    Sources: GlobalSecurity Type 073II Yudao-class medium landing ship

  4. Type 073III/Yudeng service is listed

    The Naval War College study's Jane's-derived data lists one Type 073III/Yudeng medium landing ship, reflecting its role as a one-hull bridge to the Yunshu class.

    Sources: Naval War College Chinese Amphibious Warfare Study

  5. Type 073A/Yunshu batch commissions

    SeaForces lists the ten Type 073A/Yunshu hulls, pennant numbers 941 through 950, as Zhonghua-built ships commissioned in 2004.

    Sources: SeaForces Type 073A Yunshu class

  6. Type 073III leaves landing-ship service

    The Naval War College study notes the older Yudao and related LSM classes have left active amphibious-fleet service, while its ship tables identify the one Type 073III/Yudeng hull as decommissioned in 2010.

    Sources: Naval War College Chinese Amphibious Warfare Study

Related Weapon Systems
Type 072 / 072A / 072B / 072II / 072III landing ship, Tank landing ship family, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsType 072 / 072A / 072B / 072II / 072III landing shipTank landing ship familyThe Type 072 family is a Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy tank landing ship line used for beachable amphibious lift, vehicle transport, and near-seas logistics. It evolved from the original 1970s Type 072 into Type 072II, Type 072III, Type 072A, and Type 072B batches, with later ships adding stern access, helicopter-deck facilities, improved armament, and larger vehicle/troop loads while remaining simpler than China's Type 071 dock landing ships and Type 075 landing helicopter docks.
Type 075 / Yushen-class landing helicopter dock, Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy amphibious assault ship or landing helicopter dock class, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsType 075 / Yushen-class landing helicopter dockChinese People's Liberation Army Navy amphibious assault ship or landing helicopter dock classThe Type 075, also known as the Yushen-class, is a Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy landing helicopter dock class that gives China a large-deck amphibious aviation platform above the earlier Type 071 transport dock. Hudong-Zhonghua-built ships in the class combine helicopter spots, aircraft elevators, a hangar, vehicle space, and a well deck for landing craft, with source-backed dispute-context deployments and training in the South China Sea.
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Type 071 / Yuzhao-class amphibious transport dock, Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy amphibious transport dock class, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsType 071 / Yuzhao-class amphibious transport dockChinese People's Liberation Army Navy amphibious transport dock classThe Type 071, known to NATO as the Yuzhao-class, is a Chinese amphibious transport dock class built by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding for large-deck sealift, well-dock operations, and helicopter-supported marine deployments. It moved the PLAN beyond older tank-landing ships by combining Type 726 LCAC capacity, Z-8 helicopter facilities, vehicle decks, and expeditionary support space, and it became an export design through Thailand's Type 071E HTMS Chang.
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Type 052C / Luyang II-class destroyer, Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy air-defense destroyer class, Naval SystemsNaval SystemsType 052C / Luyang II-class destroyerChinese People's Liberation Army Navy air-defense destroyer classThe Type 052C, also known as the Luyang II-class destroyer, is a Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy guided-missile destroyer class built around area air defense and long-range maritime presence. Public sources describe it as the PLAN's first class to combine a fixed AESA radar, vertically launched HHQ-9 missiles, YJ-62 anti-ship missiles, and a helicopter facility; direct conflict coverage now includes Gulf of Aden escort deployments, a 2018 South China Sea FONOP encounter, and August 2022 Taiwan Strait crisis exercises.

Sources

GlobalSecurity Type 073 Landing Ship Medium [LSM]Publisher: GlobalSecurity.org | Note: Supports the Type 073 family background, early design history, and general medium landing ship characteristics. | Accessed: 2026-06-25GlobalSecurity Type 073II Yudao-class medium landing shipPublisher: GlobalSecurity.org | Note: Supports the Type 073II / family follow-on background and later landing ship specifications within the Type 073 line. | Accessed: 2026-06-25GlobalSecurity Yudao-class specificationsPublisher: GlobalSecurity.org | Note: Supports Type 073II/Yudao dimensions, displacement alternatives, propulsion, speed, range, crew, capacity, armament, and hull-list details. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Military Factory Yunshu (class) / Type 073APublisher: Military Factory | Note: Supports the Type 073A / Yunshu-class production context, shipbuilder notation, and family-level service details. | Accessed: 2026-06-25Naval War College Chinese Amphibious Warfare StudyPublisher: China Maritime Studies Institute, U.S. Naval War College | Note: Supports the Type 073A/Yunshu role within the PLAN amphibious fleet, active LSM lift context, and older Type 073-family service-status distinctions. | Accessed: 2026-07-01SeaForces Type 073A Yunshu classPublisher: SeaForces.org | Note: Supports Type 073A/Yunshu hull list, 2004 commissioning status, builder, displacement, dimensions, propulsion, armament, sensors, and landing capacity. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Army Recognition Type 073A Songshan exercise reportPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Supports Type 073A/Yunshu Songshan training context and corroborates public specifications for dimensions, displacement, lift capacity, speed, range, crew, and armament. | Accessed: 2026-07-01AMTI An Accounting of China's Deployments to the Spratly IslandsPublisher: Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative / Center for Strategic and International Studies | Note: Supports South China Sea Disputes direct fielding context by documenting Chinese military deployments to Spratly outposts and identifying a Type 073A medium landing ship at Mischief Reef. | Accessed: 2026-07-01AMTI Mischief 2018-05-06 Type 073A YunshuPublisher: Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative / Center for Strategic and International Studies | Note: Supports South China Sea Disputes direct fielding context by identifying a Type 073A landing ship medium at Mischief Reef on May 6, 2018. | Accessed: 2026-07-01Wikimedia Commons File: Two China PLA navy 073A landing ship.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and reuse licensing for the Type 073A landing ship image used on the page. | Accessed: 2026-07-01