Chapter 8 Toward the Deep Blue: Assessment of the PLAN’s Surface Combatant Forces in 2022
2023.01.18
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PDF link:第八章 走向深藍:2022 中共海軍水面作戰力量評估.pdf
Abstract
Although the number of Chinese naval vessels is large, the total tonnage is still not as large as the US Navy. In terms of the number of PLAN aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, although they are under continuous construction, they are still regional navy and the scale of their aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships will not exceed the US Navy in the foreseeable future. Although the Fujian aircraft carrier has been launched, ship commissioning will be at the end of 2023 or in the first half of 2024. In 2022, the PLAN has 2+1 aircraft carriers, 43 destroyers, 85 patrol ships (35 Type 054, 50 Type 056), 11 auxiliary supply ships (2 Type 903, 7 Type 903A, 2 Type 901) with ocean-going replenishment capability, 11 large amphibious warships (8 Type 071, 3 Type 075), and 25 large and medium amphibious landing ships (15 Type 072A/B, 15 Type 072A/B, 3 Type 075). There are 11 large amphibious warships (8 Type 071, 3 Type 075), 25 large and medium amphibious landing ships (15 Type 072A/B, 10 Type 073A), 10 Type 074A general purpose landing craft, and 66 air cushion landing crafts (30 Type 724, 30 Type 726/A, 6 Type 958). The large number of Chinese ships means that the demand for naval command and engineering talent is also large; the training of talent may not be able to catch up with the speed of naval development, and the number of naval ships is increasing too fast, which will also dilute the amount of talent. The uncertainty of “budget variables” may lead to the risk of the result of naval construction, which may also bring adverse effect to the overall development of PLAN “going into deep waters.”