054/A FFG Thread II

Just to get them all in one place...on my , I list and show all of the Type 054A frigates built to date.

Here's what I have as of today's update (starting with 530 because of the SD limitation on pics in one post):


I can only show 15 pics at one time, so I have shown from 530 through 575 to date. Of course 529 is in service and shown on my page, and the last one (with no pennant number painted on yet, but also shown on my page) was launched in April, which was the 17th launched, with two more building and, as I understand it, one more planned.

Of course the last one building and the one planned may be Type 054B. We just do not know at this stage.

..and here's 529, the first pennant number, and the last one launched on April 28, 2013.

Jeff, you got four of the ships wrong!
538, 546, 549 and 550 must be PSed, because they show the "old" bow. There is only four ships with that bow shape and that is the first four of the class, 529, 530, 568 & 570!

plawolf said:

Do you have any pictures for comparison sake?

I like the 054A CIC generally, and it seems like the PLA has a standardised control station for their ships, UAVs and AWACS.

The only thing I don't like is how dark the CIC is, that's not going to be good for the eyes. Would a little more and better lighting have been too much to ask for?

Click to expand...

HUH? actually I thought the opposite to be honest with you. The CICs I've been into are dark like movie theater dark! LOL
.. and no the opposite is true as far as eyes are concern! The darker it is the BETTER. The last thing you want is a radar tech o, sonar operator or whoever misses a blip on his screen because of glare from some overhead light! You want it DARK!

Nordlys said:

Jeff, you got four of the ships wrong!
538, 546, 549 and 550 must be PSed, because they show the "old" bow. There is only four ships with that bow shape and that is the first four of the class, 529, 530, 568 & 570!

Click to expand...

Thank you.

I looked around all over to find pics of all of them, and simply used the ones I found. Clearly some of the pics are simply not correct. I will find other pics of them that are...and replace them as soon as I find them.

Thanks again for the heads-up, noticing that important distinction, and pointing it out. I did not even think of it...just used what I found.

Oh well, I will find other, more accurate pics, and get them corrected.

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Couple of hours later...
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Okay, I went out and found other pictures of 538, 546, 549, and 550 with the correct hull forms. There are a lot of pics out there that are wrong...I even found one with a 586 pennant number on it.


Those should be showing on the other psot, and on my site now.

kwaigonegin said:

HUH? actually I thought the opposite to be honest with you. The CICs I've been into are dark like movie theater dark! LOL
.. and no the opposite is true as far as eyes are concern! The darker it is the BETTER. The last thing you want is a radar tech o, sonar operator or whoever misses a blip on his screen because of glare from some overhead light! You want it DARK!

Click to expand...

You are only in a movie theatre for 2-3 hours max at a time. Trying actually working in those light conditions with a backlit LED screen for 7 hours a day every day and it will mess up your eyes, not to mention give you a headache every day.

Low ambient light is good for theatres because it does give more vivid colours, but a radar operator does not need to appreciate how pretty the returns are on his screen. I did also point out in my original post that the extra brightness needs to be within limits as having to squint to make out details because of too much ambient light is also bad for your eyes.

The worst thing about the 054A CIC is the inconsistent light levels, where some operators who are sitting right under the lamps might be getting too much light while those guys in the back are not getting enough.

plawolf said:

You are only in a movie theatre for 2-3 hours max at a time. Trying actually working in those light conditions with a backlit LED screen for 7 hours a day every day and it will mess up your eyes, not to mention give you a headache every day.

Low ambient light is good for theatres because it does give more vivid colours, but a radar operator does not need to appreciate how pretty the returns are on his screen. I did also point out in my original post that the extra brightness needs to be within limits as having to squint to make out details because of too much ambient light is also bad for your eyes.

The worst thing about the 054A CIC is the inconsistent light levels, where some operators who are sitting right under the lamps might be getting too much light while those guys in the back are not getting enough.

Click to expand...

Exactly.........being a CAD Engineer myself.........you do not want the work environment to be too dark..i mean i know the keyboards on these military vessels have backlights on the buttons...........but you still need to be able to focus on other things as well........and its a severe strain on the eyes.

What you need is a low lit room, with no glare and a comfortable temperature to work in. Remember these operators need to be alert to do their job properly!

There is such a thing as light engineering where you design the required lighting solution for a given environment. I know one researcher in our university department who do works on it.

plawolf said:

You are only in a movie theatre for 2-3 hours max at a time. Trying actually working in those light conditions with a backlit LED screen for 7 hours a day every day and it will mess up your eyes, not to mention give you a headache every day.

Low ambient light is good for theatres because it does give more vivid colours, but a radar operator does not need to appreciate how pretty the returns are on his screen. I did also point out in my original post that the extra brightness needs to be within limits as having to squint to make out details because of too much ambient light is also bad for your eyes.

The worst thing about the 054A CIC is the inconsistent light levels, where some operators who are sitting right under the lamps might be getting too much light while those guys in the back are not getting enough.

Click to expand...

no saying you're wrong etc just saying that from my own personal experience the CICs I've been to has always been on the dark side.. no pun intended. In carriers the CATCC (the one in the belly of the ship) not ATC is also pretty dark as well.

Popeye can probably vouch for me also... lol

I have to agree with Kawaigonegin here. I cannot speak to the CICs on the PLAN vessels apart from what we have seen.

But I have been in some CICs on a few US vessels, including a nuclear SSGN, and they are darker than what we saw here on the Type 054A.

Here's some examples of pictures that are not PR pics:

CIC on an Arliegh Burke DDG





CIC on a nuclear aircraft carrier





Combat Information center on an Amphibious Assault Ship



Combat Information on a nuclear Sub
'


The US Navy knows what is is about. It has been operating high tech CICs on more vessels for longer than anyone else. They have entire speciaties that focus on Human Engineering to ensure that the lighting, seating, screens, etc. are designed to maximize the personnel's attention, ability to focus, ability to clearly read, their keeness, and their overall comfort so they do not get overly strained. You see the results of years and years of those studies and human engineering in these pictures.