China's Deep-Sea Archaeological Vessel Successfully Completes Sea Trials; Domestic Reducing Fin Device Leads Globally!

China's first self-developed deep-sea multi-functional research and archaeological vessel "Expedition 3" has successfully completed its sea trials, marking a key step towards the milestone of officially naming and delivery of the epoch-making vessel early next year.

The Expedition 3 was developed and designed by China and built by Guangzhou Shipyard International Co., LTD. (GSI), a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC). The ship is equipped with a new generation of highly efficient retractable tail stabilizers independently developed by the 704 Research Institute of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation. CSSC 704 Research Institute provided the Expedition III with this self-developed advanced equipment to ensure the stability and safety of the ship in harsh sea conditions.

Expedition 3 is China's first vessel capable of covering the world's deep sea (including the polar regions) for comprehensive scientific research missions, with the ability to carry out manned deep diving in ice areas. The ship has a length of about 104 meters, a displacement of about 10,000 tons, and a maximum speed of 16 knots. It has a bi-directional ice-breaking capability, capable of both fore and stern ice-breaking, with a cruising range of up to 15,000 nautical miles. The ship can accommodate 80 crew members. The ship will not only be able to carry out deep-sea scientific surveys and archaeological work of cultural relics, but will also be able to conduct scientific survey missions in polar waters during the summer. Its manned deep-sea diving capability covers the entire sea area, significantly enhancing the capability of deep-sea archaeological operations.

CSSC 704 Research Institute has a leading position in the manufacture of professional equipment in the field of ship roll stabilization system in China, and customized a pair of new-generation efficient retractable tail stabilizer for Expedition 3. The area of each fin is an astonishing 9 square meters. Under the conditions of design draft and service speed, the tail stabilizer can achieve a rolling stability effect of more than 85%, ensuring the stable navigation of the ship in various sea conditions.

During the trial run of Expedition III, the ship encountered waves more than 4 meters high. Under the condition of normal operation of the anti-roll fin, the ship can still sail smoothly at full speed, which fully verifies its excellent anti-wave performance and anti-roll performance of the equipment.

In recent years, the fin reduction agent developed by CSSC 704 Research Institute has continued to develop and grow in the market, and has won wide recognition and good reputation not only in the domestic but also in the international market. At present, its vibration damping fin has been successfully included in the "Ship Industry Strong chain Brand Product Catalog (2024)", becoming one of the iconic enterprises in the field of high-end Marine equipment in China.

So far, CSS704 Research Institute's fin reduction devices have been successfully applied to more than 10 luxury passenger and pccs (high-performance vessels) such as Italy's "Dream" and "Heritage" and Finland's "Finncanopus" and "Finnsirius". These successful application cases fully prove the competitiveness and reliability of domestic fin reducer in the field of international ship equipment.

With the successful sea trial of "Expedition 3", the domestic fin reducer has been successfully applied to China's first deep-sea multi-functional scientific research and archaeological vessel, marking an important step in the field of deep-sea scientific research and cultural relics archaeology, and showing China's strong strength in the research and development and manufacturing of high-end ship equipment.