China's V/STOL studies, concepts & considerations

Gloire_bb

Major
Registered Member
Well, a cheap box can become a good cheap box if the box can be utilized to its better (if not best) potential.

Besides, the 075 LHD is also easier and cheaper to procure, plus can be built faster than 076 LHD for obvious reasons should the push come to shove, despite the obvious drawbacks with regards to STO+VL when compared to CATO+VL operations. Plus, it'll still be a major capability upgrade over an all-helicopter fleet for conducting/supporting amphibious assault operations, all things considered.
As we discussed many times over - you can make a cheap, fully capable carrier, if that's the goal ...

Huge well deck, facilities for hundreds of vehicles, battalion or more, incompatible ground command and comms, medical facilities, with all unnecessary negative effect it has on a ship, can be left overboard.

LHD isn't really a carrier which evil CCP fails to see. It's a flatter, gray roro with stronger roof and rerouted exhaust. Byd electric car invasion ships in many ways are closer to them than carriers (which are overly evolved cruisers).

You can just pay for proper aviation facilities and machinery instead, and in principle it isn't improbable you'll get a way better carrier than 001 class, but for a 075 bill. And with J-35s, without additional split in a fleet and huge costs of new aircraft program.

I.e. 075 is not a justification for VTOL(especially when vtol program will likely cost an order of magnitude more money).

PLA MC mission, on the other hand, is certainly much better and convincing.
MC is meant for offensive operations in maritime domain.
Few things solidify amphibious operations better than forward-based airpower. In this way, sino-vtol can make the entire scheme complete.
 
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Tomboy

Junior Member
Registered Member
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I'm pretty sure the top left tender is for the axle and the top right one is for a single engine Y shaped intake both seem to be for the actual product itself, while the bottom left one is for testing equipment for a clutch and bottom right is some sort of ground testing/support equipment for the lift fan. All from Shenyang AECC, IMO it seems suspiciously like they've already built or are building a full-scale prototype.
 

ACuriousPLAFan

Brigadier
Registered Member
As we discussed many times over - you can make a cheap, fully capable carrier, if that's the goal ...

Huge well deck, facilities for hundreds of vehicles, battalion or more, incompatible ground command and comms, medical facilities, with all unnecessary negative effect it has on a ship, can be left overboard.

LHD isn't really a carrier which evil CCP fails to see. It's a flatter, gray roro with stronger roof and rerouted exhaust. Byd electric car invasion ships in many ways are closer to them than carriers (which are overly evolved cruisers).

You can just pay for proper aviation facilities and machinery instead, and in principle it isn't improbable you'll get a way better carrier than 001 class, but for a 075 bill. And with J-35s, without additional split in a fleet and huge costs of new aircraft program.

I.e. 075 is not a justification for VTOL(especially when vtol program will likely cost an order of magnitude more money).

PLA MC mission, on the other hand, is certainly much better and convincing.
MC is meant for offensive operations in maritime domain.
Few things solidify amphibious operations better than forward-based airpower. In this way, sino-vtol can make the entire scheme complete.

I'm not looking to build a S/VTOL carrier.

And I also agree that the PLANMC's needs would be the main driver for China's S/VTOL development.

Though, my point is that should the 075 LHD be capable of (or can be modified/retrofitted into becoming capable of) S/VTOL operations (and since the PLANMC would be the primary user of such warships), then it is my belief that it should be done.
 

TheWanderWit

New Member
Registered Member
Honestly, if you want to give the 075 some strike capability without going through the means of creating and developing an entirely new aircraft, why not just develop STOL drones like the Mojave? Obviously, a STOL drone and an entire fighter are two different things with vastly different capabilities, but it should be able to serve its respective role on something like the 075 at a much cheaper price. The 075 has plenty of room for such a thing to work; otherwise, just build more 076s if you want to operate fighters from LHD/LHAs.

A J-35 launched via EMALS should be superior to an F-35B launched from a Wasp/America-class in every possible way. The only real con is the more, inherent risk in landing recovery. Makes me wonder if they're testing such things from that CSSC civilian test ship, given it seems it can only handle VTOL drones or STOL drones.
 
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Tomboy

Junior Member
Registered Member
Do we have any reason to believe it will be a manned aircraft?
For example if it is a CCA-like large UCAV, it would not be competing with J-35s in terms of usage.
The lift fan is slightly larger than F-35's, so it's reasonable to assume that whatever this aircraft is, It'll be of considerable size. Also there's not much overlap of a manned STOVL strike aircraft operating from LHDs and J-35s operating off carriers. They won't even be used by the same branch, J-35 is navy while this aircraft most likely will be operated by the Marines.
 

by78

General
An
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on an air-cooled clutch for a lift fan.

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