South China Sea Modernization

Most Beautiful Revolutionary Soldier of the New Era | Zhang Feng, Officer of a Unit Under the Hainan Provincial Military District: The "Steel Nail" Riveted to the Front Line of Maritime Defense

最美新时代革命军人风采丨海南省军区某部军官张峰：铆在海防一线的“钢钉”

PLA Daily (解放军报) 9 August 2026

Summary

Zhang Feng, an officer in a unit under the Hainan Provincial Military District, has spent over a decade commanding patrol boat formations and island-reef garrison forces in the South China Sea, leading upgrades to maritime domain awareness infrastructure — including a command-room display system tracking vessels across dozens of nautical miles — and building a cross-sea medical evacuation mechanism for isolated island garrisons. The article documents the PLA's persistent challenge of sustaining combat-ready, informatized (信息化) and intelligentized (智能化) small-unit capability on remote reefs far from mainland logistics and training pipelines. His commendations from the CMC National Defense Mobilization Department for 'Preparing for War and Fighting' place him within the broader campaign to professionalize grassroots garrison forces on disputed South China Sea features, though the specific reef locations and unit designators remain undisclosed.

Translation

Zhang Feng, Officer of a Unit Under the Hainan Provincial Military District——

The "Steel Nail" Riveted to the Front Line of Maritime Defense

■ Yang Zongfeng, PLA Daily Reporter Jia Qilong

Dark clouds press down from above; waves surge and crash.

In the waters surrounding a certain island reef, several patrol boats are conducting formation training as planned. The weather at sea changes abruptly; the patrol boats heave violently with the swells, yet Zhang Feng, officer of a unit under the Hainan Provincial Military District, holds fast to his command post without wavering. This scene is a microcosm of his years rooted at the grassroots level, guarding the frontier and consolidating maritime defenses.

Over the years, no matter how harsh the environment or how arduous the conditions, Zhang Feng has remained riveted to the front line of maritime defense like a "steel nail," leading officers and soldiers in safeguarding the vast expanse of blue waters.

In 2012, Zhang Feng was transferred from a certain unit to this newly established unit. In order to adapt to his position as quickly as possible, he slept in his office every night during that period. His bookcase and desk were filled with military books, and the walls of his office were hung with a world map, a map of China, and various nautical charts. "In this area there are 7 exposed reefs and more than 10 submerged reefs…" Pointing to a spot on the map circled again and again in red and blue pen, Zhang Feng briefed the reporter on the surrounding maritime situation.

"Defending island reefs cannot be done without a strike force that can be deployed, inserted, and win at any moment." Zhang Feng goes deep into the island reefs during the day to understand maritime conditions, and burns the midnight oil at night conducting after-action reviews. When training forces were insufficient, he coordinated with backbone personnel from brother units to come and assist; when it was inconvenient for trainees to go ashore from the islands, he led instructors onto the islands to conduct training…

In recent years, Zhang Feng has come to recognize ever more clearly that although he is stationed on island reefs, his thinking and horizons must absolutely not be confined to the island reefs — he must keep pace with the development of informatization (信息化) and intelligentization (智能化). In order to enhance maritime domain monitoring and surveillance capabilities based on existing conditions, Zhang Feng led his team on in-depth visits and investigations to military and civilian organizations, driving a number of construction projects to be incorporated into the annual combat readiness construction program. Today, the large screen in the unit's combat command room presents a comprehensive picture of the island reefs and surrounding waters; on the electronic display at the command console, information on vessels within dozens of nautical miles in all directions is visible at a glance.

In response to the realities of the islands' distance from the mainland and limited logistical support conditions, Zhang Feng coordinated on multiple fronts to further improve the cross-sea linkage regional medical support mechanism. Not long ago, a soldier stationed on the island suddenly lost consciousness. Zhang Feng arrived at the scene at the first opportunity, coordinated transportation assets to carry out a cross-sea transfer, and won precious time for the soldier's recovery.

Over the years, Zhang Feng has been commended by the Central Military Commission's National Defense Mobilization Department as an "Advanced Individual in Preparing for War and Fighting" and an "Outstanding Communist Party Member," and has been awarded second-class merit once and third-class merit seven times.

Original Chinese

海南省军区某部军官张峰—— 铆在海防一线的“钢钉” ■阳宗峰解放军报记者贾启龙乌云压顶，波飞浪卷。某岛礁周边海域，几艘巡逻艇按计划进行编组训练。海上天气突变，巡逻艇随波涛剧烈起伏，海南省军区某部军官张峰始终坚守指挥岗位。这个场景是他多年来扎根基层、戍边固防的缩影。这些年，无论环境多恶劣、条件多艰苦，张峰都像“钢钉”一样牢牢铆在海防一线，带领官兵守护好万顷碧波。 2012年，张峰从某部调到这个新组建的单位。为尽快适应岗位，那段时间，他每天晚上都住在办公室。他的书柜里、办公桌上摆满军事书籍，办公室墙上挂着世界地图、中国地图和各类海图。“这一带有7个明礁、10余个暗礁……”指着地图上一个用红蓝笔圈了又圈的地方，张峰向记者介绍其附近海域情况。 “守卫岛礁，离不开一支随时能拉得出、上得去、打得赢的拳头力量。”张峰白天深入岛礁了解海情，晚上挑灯夜战进行复盘。组训力量不足，他协调兄弟部队骨干前来相助；参训人员下岛不方便，他带领教练员上岛施训…… 近年来，张峰愈发认识到，尽管身处岛礁，但思维和眼界绝不能困于岛礁，必须紧跟信息化、智能化发展步伐。为了立足现有条件提升海域监控监管能力，张峰带领团队深入军地走访调研，推动一批建设项目纳入年度战备建设工程。如今，该部作战指挥室的大屏幕上，岛礁及附近海域情况全方位呈现；指挥席电子显示屏上，周边数十海里内的船只信息一览无余。针对海岛远离陆地、保障条件有限等实际，张峰多方协调，进一步完善跨海联动区域医疗支援保障机制。前不久，一名驻岛战士突然晕厥，张峰第一时间赶到现场，协调交通力量实施跨海转运，为战士转危为安赢得宝贵时间。这些年，张峰被中央军委国防动员部表彰为“备战打仗先进个人”“优秀共产党员”，荣立二等功1次、三等功7次。