PLAN Aircraft Carrier programme...(Closed)

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damitch300

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I am curious if the most forward block will contain the whole forward end of skijump and hull section.
Why would they leave it out till the end except if they do that?
Will be a huge reinforced block i quess :)
 

Totoro

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A wild hypothesis:
Given the recent evidence of J15 being actually tested to take off using catapult, which may have already happened - how likely is it that PLAN constructed these test catapults and will test them further for another 4 or so years, until cv 002 is ready for preliminary tests of its own?

Or is there a possibility that we're seeing j15 being tested from these catapults because they are being prepped for earlier service from a ship? Which, of course, can mean only service on 001a. While unlikely, it may be possible to put a catapult on the landing deck. Perhaps even that mystery bit on the deck, between the first and second arresting wire, may be an indication for it. Sadly, fourth wire seems to be in the way, where catapult would already have to begin. Unless PLAN somehow realized rearanging the wires or removing one wire gives similar performance. (maybe with better landing guidance fourth wire isn't needed?)
 

Mirabo

Junior Member
Registered Member
A wild hypothesis:
Given the recent evidence of J15 being actually tested to take off using catapult, which may have already happened - how likely is it that PLAN constructed these test catapults and will test them further for another 4 or so years, until cv 002 is ready for preliminary tests of its own?

Or is there a possibility that we're seeing j15 being tested from these catapults because they are being prepped for earlier service from a ship? Which, of course, can mean only service on 001a. While unlikely, it may be possible to put a catapult on the landing deck. Perhaps even that mystery bit on the deck, between the first and second arresting wire, may be an indication for it. Sadly, fourth wire seems to be in the way, where catapult would already have to begin. Unless PLAN somehow realized rearanging the wires or removing one wire gives similar performance. (maybe with better landing guidance fourth wire isn't needed?)

This is too far-fetched. The Type 001A is, at its simplest, a modified Liaoning. The PLAN will not fit a catapult on their first indigenous carrier, or anything too different from the Liaoning for that matter. It's too big a risk, as if building a carrier from scratch wasn't a big enough risk ovarall already.

Besides, if a catapult really was intended for the 001A, or if it could really be fit on the 001A, then why does the current hull have a ski-jump at all? If the catapult technology really was ready, then why had the PLAN not made the 001A a pure CATOBAR carrier?

With the utmost respect, your wild hypothesis is simply too wild. It doesn't make sense. A combined STO/CATOBAR carrier doesn't make sense. If you could use catapults, there wouldn't be a need for a ski-jump.
 

Totoro

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I too think it's more likely 001a won't have cats.

That being said, Soviets did start building a carrier which had exactly that - ski jump and a shoulder catapult (probably for AEW planes). So there is a precedent for it.

But what i find peculiar, if catapult combatible j15 is already flying - why does it need 4 or more years to test it before planes can even try to practice off the real ship?

As far as i know, these new ground based catapults are not some demonstrators. We had demonstrators for developing catapult tech elswere prior to this. These are serial standard cats that need little further development and they're here to help pilots train and to test actual j15.

If the above is correct, why does one need 4 years of such training before getting a chance to train further from a ship? As far as i can find, USN cadets don't train even remotely that long before going off to fly from real carriers.
 

taxiya

Brigadier
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I too think it's more likely 001a won't have cats.

That being said, Soviets did start building a carrier which had exactly that - ski jump and a shoulder catapult (probably for AEW planes). So there is a precedent for it.

But what i find peculiar, if catapult combatible j15 is already flying - why does it need 4 or more years to test it before planes can even try to practice off the real ship?

As far as i know, these new ground based catapults are not some demonstrators. We had demonstrators for developing catapult tech elswere prior to this. These are serial standard cats that need little further development and they're here to help pilots train and to test actual j15.

If the above is correct, why does one need 4 years of such training before getting a chance to train further from a ship? As far as i can find, USN cadets don't train even remotely that long before going off to fly from real carriers.

You can never let the ship wait for the aircraft. But aircraft can wait (for the ship to be ready).

You also need some years to produce all the aircrafts for 002. And many years to train pilots. You can do it on land in parallel to the 002 construction. So by the time 002 is delivered to the navy, it would almost "instantly" be operational.
 
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Iron Man

Major
Registered Member
While I agree a cat for the 001A is less likely, I think there is at least a slim chance the 001A will have a (waist) cat, if only for training purposes, not only for pilots but also for the engineers and technicians that would be maintaining a cat at sea. You can only train so much launching off a ground-based cat; at some point you need the pitch and roll and wind in your hair, so to speak. If the PLAN waits for 002 to field a cat those pilots will have to wait 10-15? years from now to experience carrier-launched cat training. And it sounds like EM cat technology is already good to go for China? So it's probably just a matter of does the PLAN want to have a cat on the 001A or not as part of its timetable for advancing its carrier-based aviation capabilities.
 
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