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Free tickets to visit two PLA naval ships during their stop in Hong Kong next week have been quickly snapped up, as enthusiasts welcome the second port call by Chinese warships in three months. Type 680 training vessel Qi Jiguang and Type 071 amphibious landing ship Yimeng Shan will be open to the public at the Ngong Shuen Chau Naval Base on Wednesday and Thursday as part of the October 1 National Day celebrations. The 11,000 spots were up for grabs through the PLA Hong Kong Garrison’s WeChat account on Saturday, with three rounds of tickets released at 10am, 3pm and 8pm. A Post reporter observed that the second batch of tickets were snapped up in 10 minutes. The naval visit comes just three months after a much-watched port call by China’s first independently designed aircraft carrier, the Shandong, in July, which drew thousands of people to the waterfront and hilltops to welcome the vessel and three other warships to the city. Lau Siu-kai, a consultant for the semi-official Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies think tank, said the growiing number of the country’s naval ships provided more opportunities for them to visit the city. “The number of Chinese warships is increasing, and they often conduct exercises in the South China Sea and the Western Pacific, so they have many opportunities to visit Hong Kong,” he said. “The central government believes that the warships’ visit to Hong Kong demonstrates the country’s growing military strength and will increase Hong Kong people’s sense of security, pride and patriotism.” Earlier this month, Chinese President Xi Jinping presided over a grand military parade in Beijing commemorating the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in the People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, showcasing the country’s growing military might and diplomatic stature. Both naval ships carry political messages related to China’s wartime past with Japan. The Qi Jiguang is named after a military general from the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), who is best known for leading China’s coastal defences against Japanese pirate activities in the 16th century. The Yimeng Shan is named after the Yimeng Mountains in eastern Shandong province. The Yimeng region is widely recognised in China as one of the major strongholds of the Communist Party in China’s resistance against Japanese aggression in the 1930s. The open day activities were part of midshipmen’s ocean-going training at the end of September, Ministry of National Defense spokesman Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang said on Thursday. They would also visit Cambodia, Thailand and Singapore, and “interact with navies of the visited countries to learn from each other to strengthen friendship and mutual trust, and deepen pragmatic cooperation”, Zhang added. Commissioned in February 2017 and operated by the People’s Liberation Army’s Dalian Naval Academy, the Qi Jiguang is China’s largest and most modernised naval training ship, able to carry about 450 crew. About 163 metres (72 feet) long and with a beam of 22 metres, it has a full load displacement of more than 9,000 tonnes, a maximum speed of 22 knots and is built to survive typhoons. Besides the classrooms, lecture halls, gymnasiums and computer-assisted training facilities such as ship handling simulators, it also carries armaments including a 76mm single-barrel naval gun and two 30mm naval guns. The Yimeng Shan, commissioned in February 2016 into China’s East Sea Fleet, is the fourth of the PLA Navy’s Type 071 amphibious transport dock. At 210 metres long and a beam of 28 metres, it has a full load displacement of 25,000 tonnes and is capable of carrying a combination of marines, vehicles, landing craft and helicopters. The ship is estimated to be able to embark up to 800 troops. Its helicopter deck and cantilever hangar allow it to house and operate up to four Z-8 helicopters. Additional reporting by Jeffie Lam
