The PLAN LCAC Type 726 Yuyi Class

asif iqbal said:

Taking care of Taiwan is the job of the PLA and second artillery corps not the marines

Marines need global lift 072 lst won't cut it

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I would think that Taiwan would still be the main scenario Chinese marines would train for.

Looking into the next years, I can imagine relatively small numbers (a batallion or so) of Chinese marines landing in some crisis spot to evacuate civilians or perhaps establish a safe spot for peace keepers to disembark - but I can't really imagine China invading some far off country with a brigade of marines.

schenkus said:

I would think that Taiwan would still be the main scenario Chinese marines would train for.

Looking into the next years, I can imagine relatively small numbers (a batallion or so) of Chinese marines landing in some crisis spot to evacuate civilians or perhaps establish a safe spot for peace keepers to disembark - but I can't really imagine China invading some far off country with a brigade of marines.

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No they would not

I think your view on a amphibious assault group is somewhat misleading

Marine expeditionary unit services one purpose that is to land men and material from sea to shore

And to do that they need to train and excercise continuously

Under the MEU umbrella disaster relief, humanitarian, military and training are all one

Having a Chinese MEU sailing around the globe for any mission shows precence it shows to reassure allies and run deterrence

It shows power projection and capability wether used for war or not

This in turn effects foreign policy and international relations

TBQH I think PLAN is not 100% sure yet about their amphibious ambitions (hey it ryhmes) lol and I think that's why the LCACs etc are kinda taking a back seat to other major capital and strategic planning.
I think the lack of rotating nozzle is a flaw in the design. The static and directional ports makes precise maneuvering difficult.
As Asif implied, MEUs need constant training and having only a very limited amount of LCACs obviously affect training.

kwaigonegin said:

TBQH I think PLAN is not 100% sure yet about their amphibious ambitions (hey it ryhmes) lol and I think that's why the LCACs etc are kinda taking a back seat to other major capital and strategic planning.
I think the lack of rotating nozzle is a flaw in the design. The static and directional ports makes precise maneuvering difficult.
As Asif implied, MEUs need constant training and having only a very limited amount of LCACs obviously affect training.

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It's not a flaw in the design. Puff ports are not as precise as rotating nozzles, but they are less bulky/heavy, less complicated, and less expensive. So it's a matter of design choice. In fact many large hovercraft use puff ports instead of rotating nozzles (including the Zubr).

Iron Man said:

It's not a flaw in the design. Puff ports are not as precise as rotating nozzles, but they are less bulky/heavy, less complicated, and less expensive. So it's a matter of design choice. In fact many large hovercraft use puff ports instead of rotating nozzles (including the Zubr).

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True, however most hovercrafts including Zubr don't need to fit into a square hole just barely big enough to fit and to do it in rolling seas and to do it quickly in one pass. I will retract my 'flaw' statement.. maybe say improvements are needed instead.

You bring up an interesting point of operational efficiency of puff ports vs nozzles. I guess without video evidence we won't know how long it takes for a 726 to dock inside a 071 well deck compared to an LCAC docking inside an LPD-17 well deck. An apples to apples comparison would also need to have similar sea states and amount of daylight present. Even if it takes somewhat more time the puff ports are clearly a cost cutting measure that the PLAN is ok with for now. The far, far larger design improvement that is needed for a modified/improved 726 IMO is a wider vehicle deck to accommodate 2 or even 3 columns of vehicles. 2 is already easily achievable with minimal redesign (relocate the curved air ducts and widen the front ramp); 3 would require some major surgery. That would be a force multiplier like none other for this hovercraft.

Here is a 2-column redesign for the 726 with relocated air ducts and a widened front ramp, enough for (possibly) 9 HMMWV-sized vehicles, 3 IFVs, or 1 MBT +/- 2 vehicles in tandem:

kwaigonegin said:

True, however most hovercrafts including Zubr don't need to fit into a square hole just barely big enough to fit and to do it in rolling seas and to do it quickly in one pass. I will retract my 'flaw' statement.. maybe say improvements are needed instead.

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welll, I think that if it restricts are makes very difficult the precise manuevering necessary to get into the well deck of an LPD or LHD, then for its use and the intent of its design to operate off of theose vessels, it is a flaw..

I am sure it is one that the PLAN is learning from...but if they want to get into and out of LPDs and LHAs with those Sino-LCACs, they are going to have to pony up and get the right type of manuevering capability.

Perhaps they are trying new ways of doing it rather than adopting the types of thrusters the US Navy uses.

That would expklain this long delay. But sooner or later, the six vessels that they are going to have that were clearly designed to take their version of the LCAC are going to demand a solution.

Jeff Head said:

welll, I think that if it restricts are makes very difficult the precise manuevering necessary to get into the well deck of an LPD or LHD, then for its use and the intent of its design to operate off of theose vessels, it is a flaw..

I am sure it is one that the PLAN is learning from...but if they want to get into and out of LPDs and LHAs with those Sino-LCACs, they are going to have to pony up and get the right type of manuevering capability.

Perhaps they are trying new ways of doing it rather than adopting the types of thrusters the US Navy uses.

That would expklain this long delay. But sooner or later, the six vessels that they are going to have that were clearly designed to take their version of the LCAC are going to demand a solution.

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To be sure we don't actually know if it is "very difficult" for the 726 to dock inside the 071. This is only an unfounded speculation based on the premise that nozzles are more precise than puff ports, which in and of itself does not lead to the conclusion that the 726 has a hard time docking inside the well deck. In fact it may not even be remotely true and the puff ports may be perfectly adequate to allow an efficient docking into the well deck.

Iron Man said:

To be sure we don't actually know if it is "very difficult" for the 726 to dock inside the 071. This is only an unfounded speculation based on the premise that nozzles are more precise than puff ports, which in and of itself does not lead to the conclusion that the 726 has a hard time docking inside the well deck. In fact it may not even be remotely true and the puff ports may be perfectly adequate to allow an efficient docking into the well deck.

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We know this...the Chinese have not built but a pitiful hadnfull of their LCAC...and yet they have continued to build their LPDs that were designed for them.

One thing, after years of being around these Chiinese boards, is that you have to learrn to "read the beads" somewhat.

You get around on other boards, you try and find out who the true "big shrimps" are, and then you analyze what they say as a whole, sometimes over months.

it is clear that there is something wrong with the Type 726 that has not been solved yet.

Perhaps it is their propulsion, perhaps it is their maneuvering, structural issues, something.

The issue of the manueverability and whether the Chinese have figured out how the US does it may be an answer.

Whatever it is...they have built and put out to sea maybe five of these things, and they have built enough ships to hold 16 of them and are building two more, enough to hold 24 of them.

...and the lag has gone on now for several years.

We will just have to be patient and keep on waiting...and analyzing what we hear and pick up on.