The Chinese are talking about a ten carrier fleet

The Chinese have started to take about what to expect from their next carriers. Some of it is as expected. Most are suggesting after the Shandong carrier, the next one will be a conventionally powered catobar warship with steam catapults and massing in at 10,000 tons more. The next keeps speculated to be coming with emals and nuclear power.

I have my doubts, to be honest, that they will abandon the updates to the varyag class they came up with and jump to a catobar ship next.

The Chinese are starting to speculate or perhaps telegraph their intended plans for a carried fleet: they want ten carriers, producing a new one every 5 years with a service life of 50. This was something new to me, at least.

It means a fleet as large as the US Navy's, in real firepower terms, and serious power projection capability. However, the build up to that is being stated to be slow. Which is also interesting.

china-defense.blogspot.com...

a reply to: anzha

Steam catapults?

a reply to: c2oden

Yup just like ours save the Ford...

Im thinking by the time they match our Naval carrier fleet, our carriers will actually be flying just like in the Avengers. Good luck to them, they gong to need it.

originally posted by: c2oden
a reply to: anzha

Steam catapults?

Planes are launched by these, duh.

a reply to: anzha

The forward hull sections for ship #3 are already laid down, and appear to have cat tracks in them, at deck level.

This appears to be a piece of the forward hull, showing a cutout that would house part of the catapult.



It's not confirmed this was for the Type 002, but it would fit that it was, if that's part of the cat track.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Wasn't there a similar cut out for Shandong though?

a reply to: anzha

I don't remember seeing one, but they've started modifying J-15s with hold back bars, and apparently have a catapult built onto one of their runways, to practice carrier operations.

The US does not necessarily rely on munitions per-se anymore to take out an adversary and has not had to rely on such things for some time.

The Chinese are fighting WW2 in their minds still, America is Advanced Warfare.

Peace.

Such is thing is only the the stuff of hegemonic empires. We're such an inspiration with our empire why wouldn't they want to try??

originally posted by: IgnoranceIsntBlisss
Such is thing is only the the stuff of hegemonic empires. We're such an inspiration with our empire why wouldn't they want to try??

A carrier is useless when a laser from space or thousands of feet in the air on a plane unseen can vaporize your entire crew and electronics within seconds and without having its presence known.

Building carriers today is a fools errand.

a reply to: SR1TX

Ah, yes... The wonder weapons with absolutely no evidence they're even remotely ready for actual deployment...

Fool errand. That's why half a dozen, possibly more, either have built, or are in the process of doing so, aircraft carriers. That might someday be the case, but no time soon.

a reply to: anzha

It is merely about projecting power in the public and international eye but in truth Carriers even the best the US has which are the best in the world are old technology, dinosaurs of another age while longer range missiles, air craft and even other forms of ship such as missile destroyers are potentially in real term's more powerful and as pilot's are phased out in favor of drone fighters this will become even more apparent.

Expect the Generation of drone carriers (True drone carriers not the likely first generation conversion jobs) to be both smaller, faster and yet also carry more Drone fighter/bombers and ordnance than human manned carriers can then rationalize just how far behind the time's this form of sea power is really becoming that the Chinese are investing in.

Carriers are useful for staging off shore but once again longer range air craft, missiles and the advent of drone technology's render that old fashioned thinking.

Carriers are still flexible but to keep up with the future they will have to move to other role's as essentially little more than support ship's, they are growing increasingly vulnerable to missile threat's as well.

It's bit of an odd one. Unlike the US, the Chinese do not have global basing and global military alliances.

Unless of course the Chinese strategy is to park them in the South China Sea to assert their claim to other countries, and international waters.

a reply to: paraphi

Its only logical to assume that china intends to change that policy.

I see right through the chinese veil, its really a matter of attaining what we have. Its always been that case with XI Jingping, he wants to see the US supplanted. This is why there is a need for so many carrier groups, to perform their versions of "freedom of navigation" routes. There will be clashes at sea.

It is no surprise that the chinese have made tremendous gains over the years, partly due to globalization, existing technologies, cyber theft, with a sprinkle of indiginous knowledge.

From the law of the jungle perspective, this is a threat to a predators food chain.

It's a long road to 10 Aircraft Carriers with just one in the water
and pieces of 3 more being built .

a reply to: UnderKingsPeak

Two. One operational, but they've launched their second, and the third is well underway.

originally posted by: LABTECH767
a reply to: anzha

It is merely about projecting power in the public and international eye but in truth Carriers even the best the US has which are the best in the world are old technology, dinosaurs of another age while longer range missiles, air craft and even other forms of ship such as missile destroyers are potentially in real term's more powerful and as pilot's are phased out in favor of drone fighters this will become even more apparent.

Expect the Generation of drone carriers (True drone carriers not the likely first generation conversion jobs) to be both smaller, faster and yet also carry more Drone fighter/bombers and ordnance than human manned carriers can then rationalize just how far behind the time's this form of sea power is really becoming that the Chinese are investing in.

Carriers are useful for staging off shore but once again longer range air craft, missiles and the advent of drone technology's render that old fashioned thinking.

Carriers are still flexible but to keep up with the future they will have to move to other role's as essentially little more than support ship's, they are growing increasingly vulnerable to missile threat's as well.

It's not just a weapon platform, it's floating sovereign territory projecting political power, including aid and relief in disasters, plus, long range manned aircraft, you can launch SAR birds if the pilots are lost. Special Forces insertion and US national evacuees from a war zone.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Same piece was used for the Shandong. Just found it from August 2013:

china-defense.blogspot.com...

Remains to be seen if the CV02 will have a cat then.

a reply to: Forensick

In that respect you are correct - so long as it stays in international OR disputed waters that the sovereign nation does not accept, it also apply's not only to carrier's but to all ship's, remember back once the main stay of all fleet's as the battle ship which dominated the waves until the advent of aircraft carriers and even after the change over in real term's government's were still producing dreadnoughts as they were still seen by both the public and the aging and less mentally flexible top brass of the various admiralty's as the great ship.
Actually I may be wrong but wasn't it the US that led the charge in modernizing there fleet's once air power was proven in the sinking of several battle ship's by fighter bombers of the period.

As a large presence though they are undeniably a fantastic political statement and being the only modern equivalent of old battleships as they have comparable crew size (though let's be fair are far more comfortable than the cramped conditions of those old timers) and are a veritable town at sea so not only sovereign territory but populated sovereign territory.

Actually I would be sad to see the end of the age of air craft carriers but the writing has been up there on the board for several decades now Except for the most excellent point you make which can not be currently replaced with anything but an air craft carrier.