Those 071 LPDs are not on deployment missions. They are for port visits and training/exchange missions with foreign counterparts.
Those aren't the same as the likes of the USN warships being deployed to Yokosuka, Japan and Rota, Spain for instance.
075 LHD thread
- Thread starter nosh
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Those 071 LPDs are not on deployment missions. They are for port visits and training/exchange missions with foreign counterparts.
Those aren't the same as the likes of the USN warships being deployed to Yokosuka, Japan and Rota, Spain for instance.
Yes, that’s what I meant, I was replying to the suggestion that China won’t be doing global force projection by showing that almost 30% of the current fleet is abroad today. Anyway, let’s end this now please before derailment, I was just replying to a simple question.
Maybe you could respond to the OP.
4th 075 LHD getting moved around. She could be getting close to sea trials. Posted by @这丫头有点风 on Weibo.
My small theory is that 075/076 ratio is tied to 054a/054b one - matching electronics make them attractive pairs.
Larger 054a series makes more 075 amphibious groups attractive.
And in PTO there is probably no such thing as too much amphibious capacity.
PTO?
lolz, Pacific Theatre of Operations
... you can guess someone's generation quite accurately by the acronyms used.
No, I was actually replying to your post. In fact, I'm actually planning to reply to both you and @SeriousPLANLover.
Those three 071 LPDs which are currently overseas cannot be counted as "deployed overseas", which is what you have initially indicated to be the case in your post. They cannot be regarded as the same as what the US did with the USN across the world, with permanent forward staging bases on foregin soil where their warships can be based from in order to conduct patrols or war (which China actually lacks).
Sure, it wouldn't be wrong to consider the idea of the PLAN having a regional-reaching presence in the WestPac (if not global) that's farther from home in the future, given that China does have ever-expanding interests in greater number of places around the world to protect.
As for @SeriousPLANLover 's post:
Given that the 076 LHD/LHA is basically a step-up 075 LHD with a larger carrying capacity and the ability to conduct limited degree of fixed-wing operations, I don't particularly expect the PLAN to continue procuring the 075s when the 076 is pretty much the class' rightful successor (unless they find something very wrong with the 076 such that it would necessistate ordering more 075s to plug the gap).
Also, there is no shipyard in China other than Hudong-Zhonghua who builds LHDs, and since there is only one active drydock which is large enough for LHD construction in Hudong-Zhonghua, hence it'd be better to just go with 076 LHDs going forward.
Sure, the 1st unit of 076 LHD seems to have a lengthy construction as we've seen thus far. Yet, subsequent units should be faster to build and put into service as the shipyard gains more experiences in the construction and the design becomes verified for serial-production after associated problems have been resolved.
As for the number of LHDs (and LPDs) that the PLAN would require - If anything, China actually needs more of them than the US needs of theirs, simply due to the geopolitical realities that China is currently facing.
Whereas the US pretty much has all of its territories secured and undisputed, China does have many islands and islets in the SCS and ECS, let alone the elephant in the room (Taiwan) that she must take care of using military power when absolutely required. This necessitates an amphibious assault fleet which is massive enough to fulfill such demands.
There's also the naval aviation factor, where the 076 LHDs can greatly aid the PLAN. As their onboard fixed-wing facilities can enable them to complement their proper CVs quite well, they can serve as backup platforms for J-15B and J-35 (perhaps even KJ-600) operations in case of serious/urgent situations (such as the PLAN losing one or more CVs to enemy action).
Hence, I don't see anything wrong with the PLAN operating more LHDs than the USN, even if China has no plans for global deployments with her navy.
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Good explanation, thanks a lot. What do you think will be the final numbers for 075 and 076? Also what do you think of a solo 075? It seems quite out of place for China honestly.
It is hard to say. For the 075, I would say this one might very well be the final one. No other vessels of the type was seen in construction or rumored. And PLAN building a small batch of an older design is very in line with its past behavior while succeeding a type. We seeing a single 075 getting built while the first 076 is being constructed reminds me of the last 2 052Cs.
The 076 is harder to gauge. But considering that they designed such a ship from the scratch, and China's need for LHDs, I expect at least 6 to be built.
