77th Anniversary of the People's Navy: Global Times Reporter Visits the Mine Sweeper Opened to the Public for the First Time

【Global Times Report by Reporter Guo Yuandan】April 23 marks the 77th anniversary of the establishment of the People's Navy. The Navy will hold open house events in military camps in more than ten cities across the country around the 23rd, with over forty active-duty ships meeting the public, many of which will be open to the public for the first time. As of April 20, various types of ships that are open to the public in Qingdao, Shandong, and Dalian, Liaoning have all arrived at their designated ports. Among them, the 081-class mine countermeasure vessel Qingzhou, which will be open to the public for the first time in Dalian, is the most attractive ship to the reporters of the Global Times. Unlike aircraft carriers and Type 055 destroyers, mine countermeasure vessels rarely appear in the public eye. With curiosity about this ship, the reporters of the Global Times boarded the Qingzhou to explore the spiritual core of this vessel.

In the naval port, against the backdrop of nearby thousands of tons of destroyers and frigates, the Qingzhou appears particularly "petite," with a full-load displacement of nearly a thousand tons and a length of only a few dozen meters, lacking the grandeur of larger ships, but exuding a sense of "maritime engineer" simplicity.

"We are a team of maritime engineers," said the ship's officer Hong Jinyu. Mines play an important role in modern naval warfare due to their low cost, ease of deployment, and difficulty in clearance, and mine countermeasure vessels exist to deal with mines. "In wartime, we will open safe passages for core combat vessels such as aircraft carriers and large destroyers in areas where the enemy has laid mines; after the war, we are responsible for thoroughly clearing the mines laid by the enemy, just as land mine clearance builds a solid safety barrier for the public, maritime mine clearance provides safety assurance for maritime operations."

Unlike other combat vessels, the stern of the Qingzhou is not a flight deck and does not have missile launchers; it resembles a large tool factory, equipped with deck cranes and multiple mooring piles for deploying and retrieving mine countermeasure equipment.

After boarding the vessel, Hong Jinyu skillfully explained these specialized tools. For example, which types use magnetic or acoustic fields to "fool" mines into detonating, and which type uses underwater rigging to cut the mooring lines of anchor mines. The forward deck of the Qingzhou is equipped with a naval gun, which is a weapon operated by a single soldier; in addition to being able to strike close-range targets and perform patrol, fishery protection, and escort missions, it can also be used to destroy floating mines.

"Small, shaky, and cramped" are the characteristics of mine countermeasure vessels. Compared to the spacious internal passageways of destroyers and frigates, the internal passageways of the Qingzhou are relatively narrow, requiring two people to turn sideways to pass each other; correspondingly, the living quarters are also quite small.

Moreover, because mine countermeasure vessels typically weigh only a few hundred tons, their stability in rough seas is poor. "In strong winds and waves, the ship's roll can reach over 30 degrees, making it very bumpy, and seasickness is a common occurrence," Hong Jinyu stated. During navigation, the cabins on the ship are closed, and the air circulation is poor, further increasing the difficulty for officers and soldiers on duty at sea.

The reporter also sensed a strong sense of professionalism and love for the mine countermeasure specialty in Hong Jinyu: he usually pays attention to the development of mine clearance equipment both domestically and internationally and has noted the trend towards unmanned and intelligent mine clearance. "For a long time to come, mine countermeasure vessels will remain an important force in the People's Navy, and we will adapt to new combat modes in our development," Hong Jinyu told the Global Times reporter.