While a very large fleet of LPDs, LHDs and other similar ships is going to be very helpful to land troops on Taiwan, it's not absolutely necessary. China has plenty of civilian ships and dual-use ships. They just need to have air control and secure the surrounding areas of the landing beaches. They can do that.
In any case, China is planning to continue to build many 071's, 075's and 076. It won't take too many years to build them. China is not in a hurry; like everything else, China has plan for PLAN and has been executing on it. It's important to build a large and balanced fleet instead of rushing to potentially mis-allocate resources.
You can't because using STUFT mean you need to get control of port and that is what the Taiwanese demolished first at the onset of hostility. See how long and how difficult for the allies to take over Antwerp during the WWII?. Without functioning port how they are going to unload supply. Army march on full stomach.
But but building transport and training corp wide beach assault takes time. So if time horizon is 5 or 6 years now is the time.
LHD is not necessary for Taiwan campaign It is even a burden because of single node failure imagine you have 100 ZBD5 and thousand of marine get sunk. Better spread the risk among smaller LPD,LST. But it is necessary to occupy the japanese owned island to prevent reinforcement.
China cannot afford long drawn campaign because that allow reinforcement from Japan and US So it has to be swift.
historylearningsite.co.uk. The History Learning Site, 20 Apr 2015. 15 Apr 2021.
Antwerp was to prove a vital port to the Allies as they pushed towards Germany after the success of D-Day in 1944. To start with, Antwerp was not considered to be overly important as Montgomery wanted to push to the Ruhr as soon as was possible. His belief that an attack on Arnhem would bring a swift end to the war did not succeed – and it was only after the failure of Operation Market Garden that Montgomery realised the importance of Antwerp in solving the increasing supply difficulties that the Allies had as their supply lines became more and more extended as they approached Germany.
Buffaloes transporting troops to Walcheren |
As early as September 8th, 1944, Winston Churchill had written to his chiefs-of-staff about the importance of the Walcheren area and the port of Antwerp. September was also the month that the British started to suffer from supply problems – what was referred to as a “supply famine”.
Ironically, it was the sheer success of the Allies that had brought about this problem. The Germans had put up stiff resistance around Normandy – but it had also led to the loss of the German VII Army. Once the break out from Normandy occurred, the Allies sped forward far faster than they had planned for. Paris was freed 55 days ahead of schedule and by mid-September, the Americans were approaching Aachen, which they had expected to do by mid-May 1945. Such an advance put a huge strain on the supplies that were still primarily coming in via Cherbourg. Some supplies were flown in, but only if they could be carried by plane – and this greatly limited what was carried. The American ‘Red Ball Express’ (heavy lorries converted to carry stores) started in late August. But the Germans still held out at Calais, Boulogne, Dunkirk and Le Harve, ports that could have been used
The capture of Antwerp would have solved all supply problems. The port could handle 1,000 ships at a time weighing up to 19,000 tons each. Antwerp had 10 square miles of docks, 20 miles of water front, and 600 cranes. Senior Allied commanders counted on Antwerp handing 40,000 tons of supplies a day – when it was captured. Antwerp was about 80 miles from the open sea on the River Scheldt. Between the port and the sea were the islands of Walcheren and North Beveland and South Beveland that was attached to mainland Holland by a small isthmus – all held by the Germans who could do a great deal to disrupt the flow of shipping into the port.
The campaign is spearheaded by the Canadian and they take the beating of 12000 men killed or wounded
