Armament
China is building the first drone-only aircraft carrier
The gray drone carrier is at the bottom of the pool
© Naval News
Drones are determining the war in Ukraine, Beijing now wants to break new ground in naval warfare. Satellite images show the world’s first drone aircraft carrier. And that’s not the only surprising thing about the ship.
The Chinese Navy (PLAN) is about to launch its third To test aircraft carriers and then put them into service. The Model 003 was a shock to the Western Navy, as the Chinese suddenly moved from the first two carriers with an outdated Soviet design to the US Navy’s latest generation of carriers.
Now there is a new surprise: Apparently they are working on a carrier just for drones. First reported by Naval News.
It would be the first drone carrier designed for large, fixed-wing drones. You need a runway. The ship is only a third of the length and size of today’s super carrier, corresponding to the dimensions of an escort carrier from the Second World War. These small aircraft carriers were built at the time to protect convoys and convoys. However, the new carrier would be too small for today’s fighter jets.
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Drone carrier with unconventional fuselage
The structure with the “island” for the command bridge to starboard seems conventional, but it is not. The ship is a catamaran with a double hull. The idea is known as an aircraft carrier concept, but it was never pursued. The catamaran shape is possible here because the carrier does not have a hangar deck below the flight deck. Naval News assumes that drones with a wingspan of up to 20 meters can be moved on the ship.
In terms of size, the wings of many drones are larger than those of fighter jets. The better gliding properties enable a long flight duration. In general, it is assumed that warships will use drones in the future. But a warship without a flight deck is limited; large combat drones cannot take off from it. Naval warfare expert J. Michael Dahm writes in “Naval News” that the shipyard is known for building copies of Western ships on which the PLAN trains in the event of an emergency. However, because the new carrier is unique, this explanation is hardly possible.
Prototype for drone use
It is probably a prototype designed to explore the possibilities of using drones from sea. Because that would follow completely different laws than the use of a super carrier. A large conventional aircraft carrier is accompanied and protected by a whole group of combat ships and submarines. You wouldn’t go to this level of effort for a drone carrier. Several countries are working on plans for such ships, including Iran and Turkey, but China would take the global lead here.
The ship demonstrates an “impressive appetite for large-scale innovation and a willingness to take on all the development risks that come with such experiments,” Dr. Euan Graham, senior analyst at the Australian Stategic Policy Institute, told the Telegraph. The fact alone The fact that Beijing is taking the lead is an “important change in itself.”
Simply built
A drone carrier will further enhance Beijing’s ability to project power over long distances. Dr. Graham points out that the ship is relatively sober and simple. This suggests to him that his deployment is viewed as “risky.” The ship is not protected at all costs like a supercarrier. In the event of a confrontation with the USA, this could mean that the catamaran is supposed to bring its drones close to the war zone and has fulfilled its task by launching a swarm of drones.
Source: Naval News, telegraph