Taohua-class gunboat (FT)

Developed as part of a post-Second Hyperpower War fleet modernisation project in the Liberated States, the Taohua-class is designed for short-range patrol and in-system defensive operations. When attached to larger formations, the Project 512-class is tasked with anti-craft screening for larger vessels. 12 Taohua-class vessels can be docked within the Jiangnan-class cruiser.

Background
Following the Second Hyperpower War, the Liberated States' Navy carried out a study to evaluate the poor performance of the Agresor-class corvette, produced in Antillia and the most common escort ship deployed within the United Front to the modern day. It was determined that the Agresor-class was unable to meet the needs of the Liberated States' Navy due to the vast numerical superiority held by Imperial strike craft, which were able to overwhelm the Agresor-class anti-fighter screens through sheer numbers. The study group thus recommended that a new escort ship design be developed which could grant strength in numbers to the Liberated States' Navy.

When the report was shared with the United Front, the Antillians rejected the report. The Liberated States thus began designing the new screening vessel on their own, with design work beginning in 229 under a team led by Senior Captain Jia Mingyu and Dr. Yu Yunru from the Liberated States' People's Shipbuilding Corporation. In order to counter the numerical superiority of Imperial fighters and the tactical flexibility of such fighter formations, the Project 512 vessel was designed to be a small, manoeuvrable ship able to act as a gunboat qualitatively superior to fightercraft while attempting to reach the manoeuvrability of fighter formations.

By early 231, the Project 512 vessel was ready for production, and the People's Shipbuilding Corporation began producing the gunboats.

Design
The Project 512-class gunboats are 31 meters long and are slightly smaller than the outdated Valiente-class gunboats which they replaced, though they have vastly improved capabilities. A crew of 8 operates the Project 512-class, with two officers and six enlisted personnel. Crew amenities include an onboard medical bay with two beds.

The offensive armament consists of two missile tubes with six Yingji-7 anti-ship missiles. Three eight-cell VLS systems for the Hongqi-10 light missiles provide a powerful anti-craft armament. For close-range engagements and point-defence, the Project 512-class vessels are equipped with two Project 730 40mm point-defence cannons. However, the ship lacks a point-defence cannon on the ventral side, creating a hole in its defence grid that must be covered through the vessel's maneuverability or other ships.

Project 512-class gunboats typically operate in "packs" of at three to seven vessels, sometimes led by a Jian-class patrol ship. As their FTL systems are limited to in-system operations, Project 512-class gunboats are able to dock within Jiangnan-class cruisers to be carried between star systems. Up to 6 gunboats can dock within one destroyer.

Operators

 * Chunmin Flag.png Democratic Federation of Liberated States: Revolutionary People's Army Space Force
 * South African Burgers Flag.svg Confederation of Coreward States: Confederate Starfleet; designated Morrigan-class