055 DDG Large Destroyer Thread

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Blitzo

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Also @Skywatcher, calling 055 as Asia's largest "surface warship" since WWII isn't wholly correct as I think the more generally accepted name is "surface combatant" (crusiers, destroyers, frigates, etc).

Over on another forum someone called out the JMSDF helicopter carriers and Indian Vikrant as large surface warships as well -- I'm sure you meant surface combatant, but word choice is important!
 

Jeff Head

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FYI...the US Navy also has simiar mockups to the one for the Type 055. We have discussed it obliquely in the past...but now, for those interested, I started a thread about it:

USN-CSEDS-01.jpg
US Navy CSEDS Site "Cruiser in a Cornfield"

If you are interested...check it out. It gives a good feel for the types of things they do in such facilities...which I am sure the PLAN is doing also in their facilities.
 

Skywatcher

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Also @Skywatcher, calling 055 as Asia's largest "surface warship" since WWII isn't wholly correct as I think the more generally accepted name is "surface combatant" (crusiers, destroyers, frigates, etc).

Over on another forum someone called out the JMSDF helicopter carriers and Indian Vikrant as large surface warships as well -- I'm sure you meant surface combatant, but word choice is important!
I knew something sounded funny when I was saying surface warship in my head!
 

no_name

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Might be easier for now to just compile infos on the different weapon platforms as standalone pdf files/electronic booklets and find a way to host them individually. The forum's ask anything threads could still be used for deliberating contents though.
 

Blitzo

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It is a very good image, however there are a few errors such as the rotating radar next to the mast as Shen pointed out, but also the RHIB davit on the mock up seems to be alongside the hangar at the aft. Not at the middle of the ship. They also haven't included the speculated aft radar that is expected while including the protrusion aft of the smoke stack which has been speculated to likely not be on the real thing. Also, the standard displacement has been rumoured to be 12,000 tons rather than 10,000 tons
 

Verum

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I just watched Rear Admiral Zhang on a military talkshow on "Beijing TV". The topic of the day was Type 055 DDG. In typical fashion of modern popular media, all their questions for the admiral were greatly exaggerated and even outrageous. One of them was whether if the DDG will be 13,000 tons plus, making it the biggest surface combatants in the world.

This is what he said specifically. He first started with USN's Spruance Class destoryer, which was the most successful design in history. Itself along with its related Ticonderoga and Arleigh Burke totalled to 100+ hulls produced. This reduces design risks and improve design maturation. But the biggest benefit of all is the reduced costs. Since those ships share high percentages of common parts, the mass production doesn't just lower costs but also make them easier to maintain for USN bases around the world. He said it's like designing a skyscraper and then build another 100 more using the same blueprint.

He said in this day and age, the hull is no longer that important. The true differences are in the weapons, engines and especially the electronics. He used Spruance-Arleigh Burke example again, fitting an old late 60's early 70's design with modern electronics and engines, still making it the most capable DDG in the world. He then drifted off course a bit, mentioning the MK-41 modules, saying they're like beer cans in a case, since they all are the same size, you can put any missiles you want in there.

Then he said China is very similar, sometimes even more careful than the US. He mentioned how first truly modern Chinese destroyer, 051, is only in the mid-4000s tons range. Then through each upgrades the tonnage improved by small increments, but still no more than 1000 tons per variance. Even though 055 is a much more different design than 052 class, it still wouldn't suddenly pop out as a totally different monster than the 052.

That's pretty much what he said in that episode, apart from the typical BS and out of this world jokes. But jokes aside, I do think he's telling the truth in this case.
 

Blitzo

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From what you've described he seems to have managed to say not very much in quite a few words, and what little he has said is immensely vague.
 
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