Xinhua / Photo by Han Cheng
2022-01-10 13:45
Standing at the beginning of 2022, recalling the achievements made by domestic military ships in 2021, I suddenly found that it has reached a very interesting turning point unconsciously. Especially in the past few years, the shipbuilding boom that was talked about by public opinion has actually gradually come to an end with the launch of a large number of 052C, 052D, 056, 055, 054A and 075. But the shipbuilding boom is not the only one. After 2021, the scale of the construction of naval ships will develop in which direction, which is worth looking forward to.
▲075 appeared late in the first wave of construction
Among the Navy ships launched in 2021, there is a very characteristic situation. In late January 2021, the third Type 075 amphibious assault ship was launched at the same time as a Type 054AP frigate exported to Pakistan. Eleven months later, in late December 2021, a Type 054A frigate built for the domestic navy, a Type 071E dock landing ship exported to Thailand, and another Type 054AP exported to Pakistan were launched at the same time. The two, one after the other, occurred at the beginning and end of 2021, respectively, and both included the 054AP exported to Pakistan. More importantly, the third 075 launched at the beginning of the year actually symbolizes the end of the first round of domestic warship construction, while the 054A launched at the end of the year is the beginning of the second round of construction that has been quietly started.
▲054A once again acts as a pioneer
After entering the 21st century, the Navy built 2 052B, 2 052C and 2 051C destroyers successively, and then shifted the construction focus to the 054A frigate which was improved on the basis of 054. It was not until around 2010 that the outside world discovered that the navy had started to build a new batch of domestic destroyers. With the gradual increase of disclosed information, these destroyers proved to be the second batch of four 052C-type destroyers that have been improved. Just as the outside world is rejoicing and looking forward to the cooperation between 054A and 052C, advanced ships such as 052D, 055 and 002 aircraft carriers, 075 amphibious assault ships, in the next 10 years, sooner or later, more or less. All invested in this round of construction boom. As a result, the Chinese navy's surface naval force, which once developed somewhat lagging behind, has grown at an astounding rate in the past 10 years, and has now become the world's second largest maritime force after the US Navy.
▲The number of constructions of 052D is considerable
However, naval ships are very time-sensitive equipment after all. The "Arleigh Burke" class destroyer launched by the U.S. Navy 40 years ago was considered a masterpiece across the ages at the beginning of its construction. Benchmark equipment to emulate. But when the U.S. Navy restarted the construction of the "Arleigh Burke" IIA in 2015, and also planned to build more than 20 "Arleigh Burke" III types with better performance, it has replaced the "Ticondero" that is about to be retired. When adding "class cruisers. The software performance of the two, especially the shipborne phased array radar, has made great progress in keeping with the development of the times, but it is still criticized by the outside world, especially when compared with the Chinese Type 0.55 million ton destroyer, it is even more dwarfed.
▲ The DDG-118 launched by the U.S. Navy in recent years
In the first round of construction of the domestic navy, among the three frigates, 056, 054A and 052D, which served the most, 054A and 052D were built in the 1990s, and the 052 and 054 frigates were built. Based on the development, it has basically exhausted its potential. The 056 tonnage is smaller, and it is actually a light frigate that meets the needs of the Navy's offshore defense. Of the 72 ships in service, 22 early models have been delivered to the Coast Guard. Therefore, in the next construction boom, whether models like 054A, 056A, and 052D need to continue to be built is a question worth thinking about.
▲052D is not a model with great potential
Judging from the example of the U.S. Navy's "Arleigh Burke" class destroyer, 054A and 052D are certainly not worth continuing to build in batches, and it is undoubtedly more advantageous to concentrate resources on the long-awaited "054B" and subsequent improved models of 055. The combination can also make full use of the hard-won strategic opportunity period. The problem is that whether it is the "054B" or the subsequent improved model of the 055, the performance has greatly improved. The capital spent on adjusting the design and production equipment is still second, and the time must not be small. For the Chinese navy that is currently planning to go to the sea. It is said that time is precisely the most precious resource.
▲055 has excellent performance but takes too much time
More importantly, the new-generation cruiser CG(X) developed by the U.S. Navy was completely aborted, and the new-generation destroyer project eventually evolved into the DDG-1000, and only 3 ships were built. It is entirely due to planning mistakes that when faced with a serious shortage of surface ships today, it can only continue to build the "Arleigh Burke" class destroyer and use it as the main model. In contrast, the domestic navy's 055-ton destroyers other than 052D and 054A are the absolute core of the destroyer formation. When 052D and 054A are positioned as auxiliary ships, there is no such thing as "Arleigh Burke". As a destroyer of the US Navy, the pressure is naturally much less when it acts as the mainstay of the US Navy.
▲ The status of DDG-1000 is very embarrassing
For now, the construction of a new round of 20 054A ships for the Navy has started, and two ships will be launched in July and December 2021. It is generally believed that the 054A is an anti-submarine frigate with medium-range air defense capabilities. When performing combat missions in the COSCO Sea, the cooperation of the 052D is often required to effectively respond to long-range air threats. Therefore, the main state of domestic warships in 2022 should be that the launching frequency of 054A is gradually accelerated, and the construction dynamics of 052D are gradually revealed. As for the 055 improved model, "054B" and even 075 improved model, and a new generation of domestically-made strategic nuclear submarines that are expected by the outside world, it is difficult to make significant progress in 2022 due to the lack of time. It's not very likely to be built.
▲054A launched at the end of 2021
Of course, in addition to the navy's own ships, the export of domestic military ships has also become more and more smooth in recent years. Take the Type 054AP frigate exported to Pakistan and the Type 071E dock landing ship exported to Thailand, which will attract widespread attention in 2021. The former two parties signed an order for 4 ships totaling 1.4 billion US dollars, and this is the second time that my country has exported frigates to Pakistan since it exported F-22P frigates to Pakistan in the early 21st century. After joining the Pakistan Navy, it will become the Pakistan Navy. main force of the surface forces. As for the 071E dock landing ship, it has set a record for the export tonnage of domestic main battle ships. At present, countries are using amphibious assault ships as light aircraft carriers, which is likely to herald the glorious future of domestic amphibious ship exports. And the S-20P type conventional ships that are currently under construction and exported to Pakistan are expected to have good news in 2022.
▲The launching of 071E represents a glorious starting point
Finally, the Navy has a real heavyweight, the domestically produced next-generation aircraft carrier under construction, which is currently developing well. According to the previous construction rhythm of the Shandong ship, it is a relatively recognized speed for the outside world to enter the sea trial stage this year. This will be the biggest expectation for domestic equipment this year, and it is destined to attract global attention on the day of its realization. Just as in August 2021, the Liaoning ship completed its transformation and sea trials, announcing that the navy is officially heading to the open sea, when the next-generation aircraft carrier is launched, it also means that the development of the Chinese navy aircraft carrier has truly entered the top ranks of the world, and it will only be the last to catch up with the US Navy. a step far.
Type 054A (Jiangkai II): Details
Type 075 LHD: Details
Yuzhao Class (LPD) Type 071: Details
Type 52D destroyer: Details
Type 055 destroyer: Details
Zumwalt Class Destroyer: Details
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