re: PLAN Type 052 Class Destroyer
I agree with Mysterre. I don't see how a single sign saying the 054A is capable of firing ASROC-type weapons is indisputable proof they exist and are operational. Being able to do something and doing it are different things. Maybe the 054A launch system was designed to have a future capability ("future proof") without that capability existing now.
Indisputable proof would be an authenticated picture, or better yet video, of the rocket being fired and the torpedo being engaged. Strong but not indisputable proof would be a CAD image or official comments on the weapon being developed or operational. A single sign doesn't cut it.
The sign doesn't offer proof they
The way I see it, there are two dimensions to this problem.
One, is semantics -- the wording of the plaque is made in a way where you could argue it only shows a "fitted for but not with" statement. The question is how often do the PLA phrase these things in a way to overstate their capability, and assuming the writing of this sign was done by someone on the ship, what logic would be in their mind to put in the statements that the VLS can fire a SAM and rocket assisted torpedo, without differentitating between the two in any way (service wise). But I accept the fact the sign can be argued to the ends of the earth as not clear cut.
Second, is whether, if the plaque was phrased in a way to indicate clearly 054A can fire a VLA type weapon or that a VLA type weapon did exist, would you accept that as proof?
[Because you know as well as anyone that it will be years before we get anything like the weapon being fired (and when was the last time we got CAD images for something as mundane as a new type of missile?). If a sign isn't an official statement then I'm not sure what is.
(Note: if an 054A visits a city where any of our posters may live in future, please go and ask one of the seamen if 054A can fire "rocket assisted torpedos" from the VLS. Or actually, maybe don't bother. The way the requirements for proof is going, that will only be probably taken as a personal anecdote and unreliable or something.)]
The fact that you're not accepting this as "indisputable" proof, isn't going to change the fact that the vast majority of the community are accepting that 054A's VLS load now has the option to launch some sort of VL ASW weapon. Practically, in terms of making predictions for us (and if I were an officer preparing a report on 054A for top brass), I would say that sign is more than enough and far more than we usually get for most weapons at this stage.
The PLA watching community I would say is a community where we have to carefully give the benefit of doubt without necessarily having solid evidence. We only had rumours (nothing far as official as this!) for years before general he weirong's statement in 2009 about J-XX, but even before 2009 the vast majority of people were aware of, and accepted its existence. We've been hearing for the last few years about a possible X-47B UCAV in the works at SAC, most people believe that's true and we've had multiple pictures to suggest that including ones posted by the always relaible 70092 in the UCAV thread.
This sign stacks up well to the spectrum of proofs that the PLA watching community has come to accept, imho.
