Re: JMSDF 16DDH Carrier Takes shape
The Osumi class does have a storage deck in forward section, which the Japanese claim is for vehicles. But I guess "vehicle" could also include helicopters, if you can somehow squeeze them inside.
With major interior/structural rework, you could install a larger elevator and convert LCAC storage space for hanger space. But that would defeat the purpose of building a LST in the first place. The ship was built to function as an LST, and will be used as such until retirement.
The same goes for the 16DDH. It's built as replacement for earlier ASW DDH and will give the Japanese navy big boost in its capabilities. However the ship was never intended for use as fixed-wing carrier, and will most likely never be refit or rebuilt into a carrier, regardless of whatever speculation people have based on its appearance or name (Hyuga).
The Japanese are doing an incrementalistic approach toward a carrier. If they suddenly unleashed several fixed wing carriers on the scene, it'd provoke hostile response from East Asian neighbors. So they built smaller ones that kidna look like carriers, then bigger ones, and then bigger ones until they build a real carrier with ski jump. Diplomatically speaking it's like dropping several small bombs over time, versus dropping a big one.
In some ways the Japanese are doing a "go slow" approach no different than the Chinese. Slowly build up tonnage and capability, import foreign tech, use joint ventures to obtain technology and improve domestic defense R&D to support your new hardware, and so on. It's a prudent, careful approach, where you have plenty of time to work out bugs and figure out what works and what doesn't.
</rant>
What we see on some forums, is people who get starry-eyed or feel all mushy inside whenever they see a carrier, or anything that could potentially be a carrier (it's a military forum, what did you expect). They wish REALLY hard that a ship would somehow "grow" into a carrier, or country XYZ's navy finally put a carrier to sea by 200X. Then if it doesn't happen, they feel all disappointed and complain about the slow-crawl progress.
In some ways it's like people who buy stocks, then saw the stock go down and they WISH and PRAY really hard that it'd come back up. Sorry, it's not a carrier, will most likely never be a carrier, and that stock ain't rebounding.
</rant off>
