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kwaigonegin

Colonel
That's also an amphibious vehicle. It's no use having nice big doors if they will instantly sink the IFV if opened in water.

Most Chinese APCs and IFVs have nice big double doors, so it's not like they didn't know the benefits of those.

For amphibious IFVs, the biggest risk comes from when the vehicles are swimming ashore, so having doors designed to be useable in the water is more important.

You don't open the doors when your're still very feet wet or semi submerge. Half a swing door would sink it as easily as a full ramp door if opened. I'm sure the designers had reasons to make it so due to some compromises they had to make however fearing water going inside it is not one of them.
 

no_name

Colonel
It seems to me there won't be enough room at the back for a large ramp-like opening anyway because the of what seems like water jet propulsion placements on either side of the door.
 

Blitzo

Lieutenant General
Staff member
Super Moderator
Registered Member
Quite a few recent IFVs of the Chinese Army appear to have swing open doors. It is the same for the ZBL09 8x8 IFVs, despite prototypes featuring wider combined ramp+swing open doors. I think they made the decision to go for swing open doors because of cost -- no hydraulics and circuitry needed for a swing door compared to a ramp. Probably relatively inexpensive compared to the overall vehicle but if one buys a large number of vehicles it will add up.
In the case of ZDB05, its door is no slimmer than the opening of the ramp on the EFV.

If one looks up photos of the older AAV, it features a relatively wide ramp but the EFV prototypes all featured a much slimmer ramp. I'm not sure why it was so slim, possibly due to armour but also due to its waterjets.
 

by78

General
ZBL09's medical evacuation variant appears to have a ramp door, but all others have swing doors, as far as I know...

24613176160_997667ae77_b.jpg
 

Jeff Head

General
Registered Member
is that mast slated for the 055 or the carrier?
I do not know. It's obvious that they are testing an integrated mast...but they have made recent changes to the carrier mockup so I do not think it is for that.

Perhaps the Type 055...or it could be for the first CATOBAR carrier?

Maybe an upgrade to the Type 071? We just don't know...at least I don't.
 
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