The PLAN began designing a warship armed with guided missiles in 1960 based on the Soviet
Neustrashimy, with features from the , but the
Sino-Soviet split stopped work. Work resumed in 1965 with nine ships being ordered. with the last commissioning in 1991. The second batch may have been ordered due to the Cultural Revolution disrupting development of a successor class. These ships may be designated Type 051D. The PLAN initiated an abortive modernization program for the first batch in 1982. The ships would be reconstructed with British weapons and sensors acquired from
British Aerospace. The
Falklands War made the prospective upgrades less impressive and cost effective, and the project was cancelled in 1984. A 1986 upgrade project using American power plants, weapons, sensors, and computers was cancelled because of the
1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. == Construction and career ==