Given the size of the ESM mast on the 54B, the assumption was always that it was going to favor quieter launches as it clearly was designed with a focus on lower emissions, and since newer YJ-83s seem to have imaging infrared sensors, they would perform better in cluttered or littoral environments. The choice of missile is likely more determined by intended mission than a singular focus on avoiding interception. Subsonic missiles are never really going to be a good option against ships bristling with sensors in multiple bands and wavelengths, as well as terminal defenses. The bar to target them and hit them is simply too low, its essentially a solved issue. Supersonic missiles have significantly less forgiving kinematics, and are theoretically far better at evading layered defenses with air cover, the kind that a CBG would provide. Their speed reduces the defended footprint of a single system because defensive missiles at the edges of their range don't have the energy to reliably strike fast targets, whereas if the subsonic missile is detected early, by say an E-2, its got a lot more effectively defended airspace to cover.
Next Generation DDG and FFG thread (after 055, 052D, 054B)
- Thread starter ACuriousPLAFan
- Start date
kwaigonegin
Colonel
A lone aircraft vs a 055 or 052D, no, the ship will almost always win, however if you increase to 8 aircrafts, the odds suddenly favor the aircraft. If you're talking a squadron of FA18 E/Fs I would say very high likelihood the ship will definitely lose.
And before people get all butthurt, I would say the same thing if a squadron of J15Ts go up against a lone AB or Tico cruiser.
Pretty much, strike fighter flight(4) at full payload is probably a reasonable limit, and by no means more should be expected from a single normal surface combatant. More - only through additional PDS channels, which are very expensive and add nothing to primary ship functionality.
Especially since larger package from both navair and PLANAF, unless something is outright missing, will include some unholy combination of strike/saturation, sead, decoys and EW: missions are planned out to kill, not just to strike. All that against a single vessel, which is limited by horizon, regardless whether it is 056 or 055.
Calculating limits and limtiations of intended target is a basic procedure after all.
And why would a lone type 055 fight a US carrier?
My original post talked about chinese combined fleet composed of atleast 20 destroyers and 20 frigates supported by 1 carrier in a layered defense network.
The entire notion is that China can fight in the deep pacific with its much smaller carrier fleet by relying on its destroyers and frigates.
If US brings 3 carriers to go against such a fleet, and each carrier supplies 2 squadrons each, can 6 squadron go against 40 destroyers and frigates supported by a Fujian like carrier with awacs?
054's VLS has rocket-assisted torpedoes.
Yes, but the YJ-83 based system will have longer range.
Maybe, but honestly not too likely.
054b weapon system is more or less carry over from 054a. In this sense, its strike weapons are more likely to be needed in their direct role - timely and efficiently prosecuting local surface and ground contacts at discretion of the captain.
Alongside what tamsen_ikard said, the PLAN would also be operating with PLARF cover too would it not? This is not something to forget, Afterall a large part of the anti access area denial strategy also relies on the anti ship ballistic and cruise missiles of the PLARF. Missiles like DF-26D, DF-27 and CJ-1000 can all reportedly go as far as >5000km from the mainland, All of the 2IC will be targetable by land based anti ship assets.
This is what I would expect to happen in a blue-water battle where there is limited support from land-based aircraft and missiles.
1. Air battle(s) with Six squadrons versus Two squadrons. This occurs beyond the range of ship-based SAMs eg. 300km range HHQ-9
2. The side with the smaller naval aviation force gets wiped out
3. The winning side destroys any opposing ISR aircraft
4. The winning side uses its ISR aircraft to detect ships at a range of 400km.
5. Antiship missiles are launched at the ships from 400km+ away. It doesn't matter what the launch platform is, nor what type(s) of antiship missile.
6. The defending ships get hit or eventually run out of SAMs. Then they get wiped out.
Comments?
---
Hence my view that there is no alternative but for the Chinese Navy to field a significantly larger fleet of aircraft carriers and naval aviation.
At that point, we could expect the Chinese Navy to be capable of dealing a catastrophic defeat against an opposing naval force.
But realistically, it will take at least a decade to build such a fleet.