Take a look aboard China’s new massive attack ship that can launch fighter jets or drones

• China unveiled its newest amphibious assault ship at a launch ceremony in Shanghai on Friday.

• The Sichuan’s standout feature is a catapult system that can launch fixed-wing aircraft.

• The premium flattop also has a huge cockpit the size of three football fields.

China unveiled the new amphibious assault ship it secretly built last year at a launch ceremony at a shipyard in Shanghai.

The Sichuan, the first Yulan-class landing helicopter attack ship (LHA), has a huge cockpit the size of three football fields. Once completed it will be the largest ship of its kind.

But the ship’s large size isn’t the only detail that sets it apart.

While other amphibious assault ships could only carry helicopters and vertical/short take-off and landing aircraft, the Sichuan is equipped with an aircraft carrier-style catapult system and capture equipment that allows it to launch heavier fixed-wing aircraft, the Chinese Navy said. . Even with the reveal, mystery still shrouds what is essentially a light aircraft carrier and Chinese ambitions for it.

The world’s largest amphibious assault ship

Construction of the next-generation attack ship began in early 2024, according to the Pentagon’s annual congressional report on China’s military.

With a displacement of 40,000 tons, satellite images show that the Sichuan is more than 240 meters long and about 50 meters wide, making it considerably larger than its Chinese predecessor, the Type 075, but smaller than the Fujian, the newest and largest of the People’s Liberation Army. aircraft carrier.

The Type 076 is also much larger than Japan’s Izumo-class helicopter carriers. Although the Sichuan is about the same length as the US Navy’s LHAs with a similar displacement, it is more than 60 feet wider.

The Chinese warship’s increased size and deck space allow it to accommodate both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, with additional storage capacity for more personnel and equipment.

Electromagnetic catapult system

Unlike traditional light aircraft carriers, the Sichuan is equipped with a catapult system and capture equipment for launching and recovering fixed-wing aircraft – an operational capability usually reserved for aircraft carriers.

“This is not something we’ve seen before,” Matthew Funaiole, a senior fellow at the China Power Project at CSIS, previously told BI. “No other country has an LHA with a catapult system on it.”

The Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) is likely similar in design to the catapult aboard the U.S. Navy’s advanced Ford-class supercarriers.

The only warship in operational service using EMALS is the US Navy ship USS Gerald R. Ford. China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, which has undergone shake-down trials at sea, also has three EMALS-style catapults, but the Sichuan’s catapult trench, which is over 130 meters long, is considerably longer in comparison.

Previous Chinese airlines had ski-jump-style ramps for launching aircraft without catapults, leapfrogging steam-powered catapult technology to pursue the more advanced electromagnetic launch system.

China’s relatively young aircraft carrier, which has been operating for just over a decade, could still face a “steep learning curve” in using modern catapult technology, retired Admiral Raymond Spicer, the CEO and publisher of the US Naval Service, told reporters. Institute, previously at BI. But the installation of the technology on board the Type 076 could indicate China’s confidence in the design.

Potential future ‘drone carrier’

The Chinese Navy has yet to confirm what type of air wing will operate aboard the Sichuan, but it could play a role as a major drone carrier in the future, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The ship’s catapult, wider cockpit and unobstructed runway make it well suited for large-scale drone operations as China expands its arsenal of UAVs such as the Hongdu GJ-11 stealth combat drone, Guizhou WZ-7 reconnaissance drone and the CASC CH-4B Rainbow attack UCAV.

‘A substantial step forward’

While the exact timeline for the Type 076 is still unclear, the Pentagon estimates the ship could join China’s naval fleet in the second half of the decade.

China has more than nearly 400 naval platforms and the largest maritime force in the world, but has long been considered a greenwater navy, meaning it operates mainly near the coast. Amphibious assault ships and aircraft carriers change that equation.

“I think it is just as important, if not more so, to highlight how mind-bogglingly impressive China’s ship-building ability is,” Funaiole said.

While not much is known about the capabilities or primary mission of China’s next-generation amphibious flattops, the CSIS said the Sichuan “represents a substantial step forward” toward the PLAN’s blue-water ambitions, which involve projecting power into waters thousands of kilometers away.

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