That reminds me. I heard that when the Type 003 was halfway built, construction was paused for a while to change the design from steam catapults to electromagnetic catapults. Could the ship in the dry dock also be undergoing changes?
00X/004 future nuclear CATOBAR carrier thread
- Thread starter AETHER
- Start date
IMO the halt was partly due to some design changes but also more importantly due to COVID-19, the ship in the drydock if indeed is 004 is probably just waiting for the reactor vessel to complete final checks.
I don't think China will approve the construction without the final decision on catapults. The electromagnetic catapult had won the bid long before the construction.
From Captain小潇
So straight hulled instead of the bulged design of Soviet carriers and 002/003. Which means 43.5-43.9m measured for the beam of this ship will be its final waterline width, IMO the hull of this ship is far too thick for a civilian vessel and more resembles anti-mine/torpedo compartments on military ships, so I guess that's 1 extra point for carrier side of the argument. Potential displacement up to 120,000 tons?From Captain小潇
Latest (albeit intentionally blocked) view of the mockup island superstructure at Huangjiahu. Posted by Captain on Weibo.
The mockup structure is expected to be completed by July.
Also, just saw this island superstructure 3D model by @rational314159 on Twitter. Given the timing of the tweet post, I believe that this model could be representative of the actual build at Huangjiahu (which is also agreed by Captain, so I'd assume that he/she has seen the real thing).
The mockup structure is expected to be completed by July.
Also, just saw this island superstructure 3D model by @rational314159 on Twitter. Given the timing of the tweet post, I believe that this model could be representative of the actual build at Huangjiahu (which is also agreed by Captain, so I'd assume that he/she has seen the real thing).
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According to the rabbit guy(that's who this illustration and the 004 satellite pics come from), the island at the carrier mockup site has been finished, and the scaffolding will now come down.
And what's the current explanation - or even conclusion - on the second pat that looks like a stack?
From what I remember, neither 002 or 003 had a visible anti-torpedo bulge. Pretty much all large warships since WW2-era featured a straight hull from weather deck to keel.
The main reason older warships (especially BBs) had a visible bulge was because WW2-era battleships and older typically had an exposed inclined armour belt, with TDS bolted on below the waterline. Later WW2 BBs (Iowa-class, Richelieu-class, South Dakota-class, etc.) featured internal armour belts, and so their external plating was completely straight amidships. This made armour repairs more difficult, but this layout was more efficient in terms of armour usage and weight, as now the armour didn't take up the full width of the beam.
Since heavy armour plating is not a consideration for modern warships, it's very rare that we see distinct bulges nowadays. The TDS would be built into thick compartments behind the external plating (i.e. an internal protection layout), as you've observed from the latest photos. Having a straight and even exterior plating is also better for hydrodynamics.
For reference, 003 under construction in late 2019:
Sorry, I wasn't very clear about what I meant. What I meant was that 003 and previous carriers had a more tapered hull like Soviet designs and from what I heard that although 003 had a wide beam, it tapered in right under the waterline causing the actual waterline width to be slightly lower than maximum beam of the hull. This does not seem to be the case with 004 as it seems to have a straight hull all the way up like US carriers. Which makes sense as Russian/Soviet designs is more hydrodynamic due to being conventionally powered however with nuclear propulsion you can afford to make your boat blockier for more volume and protection.