055 DDG Large Destroyer Thread

[sndef888]

People can be making speculative educated guesses based on what they are saying and somehow these posts becomes "rumors".

I am not even sure if those modules in Dalian are 052D or 055. At this stage and without sharp pictures, its hard to identify. zh.wiki entry on the 052D now lists four new entries of ships being made in Dalian.

Its possible that the 4 ship batch supposed to be made by Dalian may have been postponed or deterred, as all 052D production are shifted to Dalian. Production of 052D at Jiangnan may have been cancelled for the lack of slots, shifting all production to Dalian. Jiangnan is currently chock full of commercial ship contracts, but its also possible Jiangnan might be allocating resources to build ships like 004 in the future.

If Jiangnan builds 4 Type 055, I do not think it will end there. Remember this is just a batch. It will be followed by another, then another. By putting production into smaller batches, they can make refinements in the next batch. Its possible to cancel a longer term plan on the 055 to make way for an improved 055A.

I'm hoping it's true though, I have a soft spot for the 052D, given it's the first true modern indigenous destroyer of the PLA.

Perhaps they just tested the 055 and found the increased capability - increased cost ratio to be not worth it and preferred more hulls. Just wild speculation though. I definitely think 055 production will go more than 8 or 12.

 

[Andy1974]

I'm hoping it's true though, I have a soft spot for the 052D, given it's the first true modern indigenous destroyer of the PLA.

Perhaps they just tested the 055 and found the increased capability - increased cost ratio to be not worth it and preferred more hulls. Just wild speculation though. I definitely think 055 production will go more than 8 or 12.

it’s probably more to do with production efficiency, besides having lots of 052D’s is very complimentary to lots of 055s. We often see a 055 accompanied by at least one 052.

 

[AndrewS]

Perhaps they just tested the 055 and found the increased capability - increased cost ratio to be not worth it and preferred more hulls. Just wild speculation though. I definitely think 055 production will go more than 8 or 12.

Cost to capability ratio is one element.

But more importantly is the [cost / capability ] as applied to the actual missions envisaged for the Type-055 and Type-052D

In notional carrier groups for both the US and China, we typically see 5 destroyers/cruisers as escorts, with only 2 cruisers acting as close escorts for the carriers. Back in the day, the US would assign 2 Ticonderogas as these close-in escorts.

So the split was 2 cruisers and 3 destroyers.

Given that 2 ships would be used as radar pickets on the threat axis, using a cruiser was more expensive and would be a juicy isolated target in itself.

 

[type055]

052D is a mature and reliable ship, so it will be mass-produced to fill the vacancy of a large number of retired warships of the Chinese Navy As the core member of the future aircraft carrier formation, 055 will continue to upgrade and improve until the potential of the entire platform is exhausted

 

[AndrewS]

052D is a mature and reliable ship, so it will be mass-produced to fill the vacancy of a large number of retired warships of the Chinese Navy As the core member of the future aircraft carrier formation, 055 will continue to upgrade and improve until the potential of the entire platform is exhausted

Most of the old ships in the Chinese Navy have already been retired.
New construction is about growing the fleet these days

 

[Zichan]

052D is a mature and reliable ship, so it will be mass-produced to fill the vacancy of a large number of retired warships of the Chinese Navy As the core member of the future aircraft carrier formation, 055 will continue to upgrade and improve until the potential of the entire platform is exhausted

Yeah. I am eager to see how the PLAN CSG will look like. With its high top speed and endurance, the Type 055 is an ideal escort.

On the other hand, I doubt that the 052D is a particularly good fit. That class sacrificed a lot of its speed/endurance for enhanced capability: it has essentially the same propulsion as the Type 052B but with over a 1,000 tons more displacement.

 

[Zichan]

For the 055 to use the long cells on the aft section means there might be minimal to no machinery in the aft section, and I will assume, similar to the 052D, there is not machinery in the bow or front section where the front cells are sitting. The machinery is exactly where the superstructure starts, and where it ends in the funnel, plus another machinery section on the small mast past the aft VLS.

The constraint for the length of the VLS cells is the position of the propeller shafts. Even if you could somehow squeeze it in, placing machinery in the same compartment and directly under a VLS would be a safety hazard.

 

[siegecrossbow]

 

[taxiya]

For the 055 to use the long cells on the aft section means there might be minimal to no machinery in the aft section

The aft cells sit above the drive shaft if 055 use mechanical transmission, likely today. When and if 055 switches to IEPS, the space under the aft cells can be increased. So although I am not sure if it is possible for today's 055 to have long missiles in the aft, but should be possible in next variant.

 

[Tam]

The aft cells sit above the drive shaft if 055 use mechanical transmission, likely today. When and if 055 switches to IEPS, the space under the aft cells can be increased. So although I am not sure if it is possible for today's 055 to have long missiles in the aft, but should be possible in next variant.

They do use long missiles on the aft, since we already see them firing YJ-18s in that section.