i see, do you foresee a similar problem for the PLAN when/if the dark eagle hypersonic missile is deployed? or are you more capable of chinese protection systems
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- Thread starter Jeff Head
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They could just put HQ-19 on ships as it was advertised to be able to intercept HGVs and hence probably HCMs as well
Not really, because USN has exactly three ships capable of launching them. Even with no protection whatsoever that's not a gamechanger. HGVs won't be standard-issue munitions for USN the way they are for PLAN.
Land-based launchers are a different story, of course.
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Not even. Only one Zumwalt of the two active (third one is not in service yet) is currently being refitted for CPS missiles. At-sea testing is still 2-3 years away, so realistically even this one refitted ship won't reenter operational service until 2028/2029. Regardless of that, the main issue here is how abhorrently expensive it is. The land-based version, LRHW, is $43M(!) per shot. I still wonder how. A ship/sub-launched one is even more complex and will cost more.
If we assume say $47M per CPS missile, and a Zumwalt/Blk 5 Virginia can carry a maximum of 12 CPS missiles, that means to just launch all of those, would cost over $560M (!!) just to launch all twelve. That's the cost of a single Type 052D DDG. Add in two for 24 missiles, that would be well over a $1B dollars. An entire Type 055 would be cheaper to purchase which can carry anywhere from 32-40+ YJ-17/YJ-20/YJ-HCM that all have long ranges. Let's say you launch 24, and assume even a "low" interception rate of say 70%, that means only 16-17 of that 24 get through to their targets. So you just spent over $1B USD to just hit a few targets. You better hope that whatever you're targeting is extremely high value and will benefit your goals in the short/long term.
It simply isn't sustainable and why I think its not that potent of a weapon even if it is good. Like you said, hypersonic munitions will only be expensive niche capabilities for the US rather than them being critical and main weapons that play a much broader role in China's doctrine and tactics of their use.
Before worrying about the cost and sustainability.
Better to first worry about the deliverance, both in terms of performance and time.
Because for current day US (MIC results and trend for last 20 years), default expectation for new stuff should be under deliver in performance with huge delays.
How well could a 55 function as a fire support platform for an amphibious invasion force? Like I mean as troops land on the shores the type 55 could launch missiles from a distance at multiple targets.
lcloo
Major
Type 055 serves better as air defense and ASW as well as anti-surface roles. It is too valuable to be used as fire support for beach assaults. Its main role is aircraft carrier escort, or acting as a flag ship, or a flottila leader in an open sea.
For shore bombardment in reality for China, long range rockets are sufficient. if you want closer fire support of say, 30KM from shore, you can just load shorter range rocket (like the 122mm rockets) carrier, track or wheel, on any ships that has ample deck space, though this is not a good option due to wave movement effect on the ships.
Modern warfare would also call for fire support from attack drones from land and ships, example type 076.
Using type 055 as fire support ship is backward thinking towards the WW2 era.
In the past few decades, the spear was not as strong as the shield, and attacking a fleet required overwhelming the total firepower channels of the Aegis system. Now, the spear is much stronger than the shield; even if the entire fleet fires at full capacity, intercepting hypersonic targets still depends on luck. It’s like in an MMORPG, where 2 main Ts slowly wearing each other down has turned into 2 DPSs deciding the outcome with a single strike.
Firing off cruise missiles at tactical targets on the land is just about the worst use of a VLS cell. Pretty much anything other missile would be more efficient and effective, so you'd want to avoid doing it as much as possible. This is especially true as it's very impractical, if not impossible, to reload a VLS cell outside of a port.
What's even more important is that the strategic situation informs doctrine, and the strategic situation is that the only places that China is likely to perform amphibious assaults are on Taiwan. Of the Taiwanese islands, the Kinmens are within range of Chinese tube artillery and Taiwan island is within range of the PLA's 370mm rocket artillery. These are far superior weapons for bombardment, and I think that the idea is to knock down every single Taiwanese defence with them before a single marine is sent ashore. And if push comes to shove, and the PLA decides that a target farther away needs to be hit, they have access to the world's largest arsenal of land-based cruise and ballistic missiles in the world.
Sure, they can turn a 055 into a good platform for ground attack missile if the PLA needed to invade Madagascar or some place like that, but why would something like that ever happen?