China Defense Blog

As expected, the PLAN has deployed its third taskforce to the Gulf of Aden to fight pirates and protect shipping in that region. What is not expected is that the third taskforce is composed of one FFG-529 Zhoushan, one FFG-530 Xuzhou and a supply ship (886 Qiandaohu) from the East Sea fleet (Here). Conventional wisdom suggests that the PLAN would focus its attention in turning the South Sea Fleet from a “green-water” into a true “blue-water” fleet. The previous deployments of the South Sea Fleet to the Gulf of Aden are proven ground for the PLAN’s sailors. The South Sea Fleet, as Bussert stated in his June 2009 SIGNAL article, is “the tip of the Chinese navy spear and they are they are taking on more diverse and far-reaching missions.”

I also subscribe to that wisdom.

Looking at PLAN’s North Sea Fleet’s recent comprehensive military drill near Okinawa (here) and the deployment of the East Sea Fleet to Gulf of Aden may be signaling a shift in PLAN policy as they might be ready to have all three fleets come out of the “island chains” so people will accept them as they are. No longer are they a continental power bounded by land, but rather a seafaring trade partner with a strong navy protecting its interests. Not that there is anything wrong with that.

The East Sea Fleet also conducted a military drill near Okinawa back in May 2007 and while its naval base in Zhoushan received much less media attention compared to South Sea Fleet’s “Dr. Evil Secret Lair” in Hainan. The Zhoushan base also underwent upgrades to accomplish the four Russian Sovremenny Class DDGs and the four newly built Type054 FFGs based there as part of the third Destroyer-Frigate Dadui. The PLAN also stationed all their Russian import (including the Kilo class Submarines) into a single area to consolidate Russian support and maintenance assets. On paper the East Sea Fleet can be a powerful ocean-going taskforce, but its primary focus remains Taiwan. It will be interesting to see if the current deployment to Gulf of Aden is a “one-time-deal” or the beginning of a policy shift.

According to Shanfei’s press release posted on its website (http://www.shanfei.com/xwzx/new/20090713,1.html) the Y-9 dual-purpose Tactical Transport Aircraft project has been restarted. Shanfei upper management acknowledged elements that caused the delay of this important project. They included: unbalanced department workload, lack of research capability, project planning, funding, in addition to a shortage of parts, limited parts assembly lines and final assembly, and limited test flight capabilities. There were also technology limitations, frequent accidents due to low safety standards, poor quality control, undefined procedures and poor production work flows that led to a serious delay of the project.
Here are the words in Shanfei’s press release and judging from the language used AVIC, Shanfei’s parent company, must be getting hard on them.

大运研制按计划要求正常推进。但 由于任务繁重、研发能力和资源不足，对现场生产组织提出挑战，多项工作进度不同程度滞后；零件生产、部装、总装、试飞等能力未填平补齐，受现场技术质量问 题处理影响，生产不畅，任务不均衡，严重影响产品交付效率；因违反程序、操作规程等原因，多次发生质量、安全事故，安全生产形势严峻

The Y-9 Tactical Transport Aircraft, or YunShuji-9 project, was reported back in 2001 as an enlarged version of the PLA’s workhorse Y-8 transport: a Chinese version of the C-130 Hercules with an airdrop payload capability of 20,000kg or 100 paratroopers. The older Y-8 had a max airdrop payload of 13,200kg. The Y-9 has a built-in RoRo ramp for quick offloads/airdrops. It will also have a max range of 3000km, allowing it to reach most of China from Wuhan—the central city in China and also home to the 15th airborne army. Strategically, this allows the Chinese military a quick reaction to any trouble spot and is one of the reasons why the Y-9 project is so important. Also, it lessens the reliance on Russia for transport aircraft, even though it is not in the same class as the Russian Il-76’s payload of 50,000 to 88,000kg. But the Y-9 is a homegrown and inexpensive solution that is capable of dropping armor such as ZBD03/ZLC2000 Airborne Infantry Fighting Vehicle. The PLA’s order for 36 Il-76s placed in 2005 is still under negotiation.
Now that the project is seriously behind schedule, it will not be surprising to see management changes take place at Shanfei.

Official photo from Shanfei



Y-9 display model and artist impression:






ZBD03/ZLC2000 Airborne Infantry Fighting Vehicle being loaded into an IL-76







Two airborne buggies loaded into an older Y-8

Looking at the weapons list the PLA is bringing to this exercise, I so want to play Steel Panthers III Brigade Command: 1939-1999 again.

Such display of heavy armor seems somewhat out of place in light of China's current security requirement. To the East is the mountainous terrain of Korea, jungles to the South and yet more mountains to the West and there is an island somewhere. The only tank-suitable terrain is Russia. Oh yeah, I got it, they want to invade Russia with help from the Russians!


Type 89 (YW531) (ZSD89) Command APC




Type86B (WZ501) (ZBD86) IFV


Type 99A (WZ123) (ZTZ99) MBT



PTL02 6x6 Wheeled Self-Propelled 100mm Assaulter



Type 89 (PLZ89) ((WZ/WMZ322) 122mm Self-Propelled Howitzer



WZ-9 Attack Helicopter


WZ-9 Light Attack/Scot Helicopter



Mi-171 Transport Helicopter

Latest photos of FFG 253 PNS Saif, the last of three sword class FFG to be built in Shanghai









For reference, here is FFG 251 and FFG 252

Russian military advanced unit arrives in China for anti-terror exercise:

Judging from equipment on display the PLA "battle-group" assigned to this anti-terror exercise comes from the 115th Mech Infantry Division, 39th Group Army, Shangyang MR and the choppers are members of the 9th LH Regiment, 39th Group Army. It'll be interesting to see what Russia's impression of the Type 99 MBT will be, now that they have a chance to inspect it up close.

Russian military advanced unit arrives in China for anti-terror exercise

english.chinamil.com.cn 2009-07-10

　　TAONAN, Jilin Province, July 9 (Xinhua) -- An advance unit of Russia's armed forces arrived at a military base in northeast China's Jilin Province Thursday to prepare for a joint exercise with the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

　　The advance unit is headed by Major General Kachan, chief of Russian Far Eastern Military District's air defense forces, and has ten personnel responsible for commanding aviation, parachuting, artillery, communications and logistics units.

　　They will make preparations for the 1,300-member Russian troops who will take part in the five-day anti-terrorism military exercise code-named "Peace Mission-2009" to start on July 22.

　　The Russian unit was met by Major General Gong Jicheng with the PLA Shenyang Military Command at Jilin's Baicheng train station where they were transported to the PLA's Taonan tactic training base.

　　Chinese and Russian defense authorities announced Wednesday that the two nations, both members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), will jointly conduct the exercise.

　　Chief of General Staff and General of the Army of the Russian Armed Forces Nikolai Makarov and Chief of the General Staff of the PLA Chen Bingde will hold strategic talks in Russia's Khabarovsk on July 22.

　　About 1,300 personnel from the army and air force of each side will participate in the exercise. Russia will also send an airborne assault unit, according to the Defense Ministry.

　　Prior to the Russian advance unit, the PLA's director team for the exercise headed by Lieutenant General Ma Xiaotian had arrived at the training base.

　　Most of the PLA's 1,300 troops in the exercise have been deployed and are making the final preparations, according to Ma, who is also deputy chief of the PLA's General Staff.

　　The Taonan tactic training base is one of the PLA's major bases for military exercises. It belongs to the PLA's Shenyang Military Command which borders Russia's Far Eastern region to the north.

　　After the "Peace Mission-2009" joint anti-terror exercise, the military base will be engaged in the "Stride-2009" exercise in August and September, the largest tactic training exercise so far conducted by the PLA.

On June 29th, the PLA Daily reported a North Sea Fleet task force conducting a comprehensive military drill under “a complex electromagnetic environment”. (here)


At first I did not pay much attention as the PLAN conducts near shore drills frequently. It turns out that the drill was conducted near the 2nd island chain and 170 Kilometers Southwest of Okinawa. The task force left port on the 19th, “entered” the Pacific Ocean (passed the first island chain) on the 22nd and started the drill on the 25th. Look, they also brought along a tug boat, just in case they needed a tow.

Wow! I am surprised to see no coverage in the West about this minor venture, come to think of it, it is the month of Michael Jackson, so the lack of interest is understandable.


On totally unrelated news… Japan may deploy troops near “disputed” islands in the East China Sea. (here)











Here is a follow from PLAdaily regarding this ex.

The red banner reads "exit the island chain"

http://pic.chinamil.com.cn/news/2009-07/10/content_1831609.htm

“牢记领袖嘱托，忠实履行使命”。6月15日—30日，北海舰队某驱逐舰支队“石家庄”号导弹驱逐舰与兄弟部队舰艇组成联合编队进行远航训练。他们 在复杂海域、复杂电磁环境中结合新大纲对复杂条件下导弹、火炮攻击，支援受损舰、海上拖带等多科目进行实战化训练，有效检验和提高了部队战斗力。 中国军事图片中心 王洪建 特约通讯员 于文献 摄 （责任编辑：孙礼）

“Chinese Mine Warfare -- A PLA Navy ‘Assassin’s Mace’ Capability” by Andrew S. Erickson, Lyle J. Goldstein, and William S. Murray has been published by the US Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies

http://www.nwc.navy.mil/cnws/cmsi/documents/CMS3_Mine%20Warfare.pdf

Mine Warfare is an area of great interest by the PLAN and yet it has been overlooked by many analysts, hopefully this paper will shed new light on the PLAN’s capabilities and intentions. This is the most comprehensive study available on the topic, and is a highly recommended read.

You know these guys do great work, right?

Back in June 13, I was talking to my friends about how much I enjoy the writing style of Banyan, a columnist for The Economist. (Here) While I don't know much about Mahan and his notion as argued by Banyan but I like how he writes and the way he frames his arguments. I would be grateful to Confucius if I can write 10% as well. To support his main argument of a Mahanian revival in Asia, Banyan cited Jim Holmes and Toshi Yoshihara of the United States Naval War College’s and Robert Kaplan’s “Center Stage for the Twenty-first Century” published in the March/April 2009’s issue of Foreign Affairs (here) Being a long time readers of Holmes and Yoshihara’s work, I believe they were somewhat misquoted.

In no time, the real debate started; first Holmes and Yoshihara wrote an indirect response in the current issue of The Jamestown Foundation’s China Brief titled "A Chinese Turn to Mahan?" (here) to “clarified” their view on the Mahanian notion to both Kaplan and “A columnist for The Economist”. In due course , Andrew Erickson and Thomas Culora of Naval War College wrote a rebuttal titled "Arms and Influence at Sea" to Kaplan (here)

A coordinated effort by the USNWC boys? most likely not. Both sides made some good points and I am not educated enough to take sides, but it is always wonderful to see professionals debate in public, I feel like I am getting an education because of it. I am anxious to read Banyan and Kaplan’s response.

I know no idea that Gary Larson, creator of Far Side, works for PLA now.

The first “China design and build” Roll-on/Roll-off (RoRo) vehicle carrier launched on June 24, 2009 at Zhoushan shipyard marking a major advance in China’s building capability.


The COSCO (China Ocean Shipping Company) “Spirit” 中远盛世 has a fully loaded displacement of 14,500 tons, capable of carrying 5000 vehicles with a design speed of 20 knots. Its dimensions are: 182.8 meters in length, 32.2 meters in width and 34 meters high. It has a total of 9 stationary and 3 adjustable decks to accommodate vehicles of different heights. Just like other modern RoRo’s, the COSCO Spirit is fully automated and allows for single-crew-piloting.


COSCO cited the increase in automobile imports as the sole reason to build such a fleet and indeed in January, China surpassed the US as the world’s largest car market. (Here) But the RoRo carrier can press into military service and is generally considered a national security asset according to the August 2006 report “The Role of United States’ Commercial Shipping Industry in Military Sealift” presented by the US DOD due to its capability to load and offload large volumes of vehicles in repetition. US civilian RoRo fleets under the US Transportation Command were credited as a necessary strategic asset during the recent gulf war as cited by the same report.


The RoRo carrier also played an important support role for the Royal Navy during the 1982 Falklands War by ferrying 4000 troops to the remote island battlefield. Today one of the Royal Navy’s auxiliary training ships, the HMS Argus, was also converted to a RoRo carrier.


Additional RoRo carriers will augment the PLA’s transport capabilities especially in situations where large numbers of Armored Fighting Vehicles (AFV) are needed. At the same time, one must be careful not to view it as an amphibious asset for operations directed at “a run-a-way island,” err, I mean “an investment partner” as RoRo carriers require a secure and undamaged deep seaport in order to offload.


Photos of COSCO "Spirit" with primer gray and a top deck that can accommodate helicopter operations.





It looks similar to the French Navy's amphibious assault ship Mistral (L9013)




Previous RoRo with imported designs are painted red such as the smaller Changjilong which launched in Sept 08, 2008






Other RoRo currently in civilian service








CCTV Reported a military exercise involving Yue Hai Tie 2, a railroad car RoRo, pressed into military server in Hainan Island.

More details emerged on the third Sino-Russia joint military exercise with 1300 troops from both sides participating. This is considerably less than the 2005 exercise where over 10,000 troops (8000 Chinese and 2000 Russian) including marines and paratroopers assaulted an “extremist” controlled runaway island off coastal China.

While the 2005 exercise showcased the latest development, it also exposed some of the underlying weaknesses of the PLA in areas such as rigid command structures, lack of experience in complex mechanized airborne drops, lack of initiative by junior officers to adapt and overall poor communication between service arms. The Russian military also showcased long range bombers such as Tu-22m and TU-95 hoping to land export orders from China, but no deals were made. Overall, it was an expensive dog-and-pony show that exposed weakness rather than strength.


The 2007 show demonstrated the first PLA deployment of the JH-7 and WZ-9 to Russia with a PLA battle- group of 1600 troops in a combined armed maneuver that tested long-distance mobility and logistic support. For many it was considered to be the first such demonstration of power projection outside of China. With a reduced OPOBJ; instead of an island, they assaulted an extremist controlled town, the PLA seemed to perform better than 2005. However, the PLA’s Type92—the mainstay of PLA’s wheeled APC—was shown to be underpowered in rough terrain, and joint operation planning with the Russians was not well coordinated. Members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization also took part in the 2007 show with a total of 6500 troops and 80 aircraft from China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

It will be interesting to see what is in store for this year.

Russia, China To Hold Military Exercises July 22-26 - Report


MOSCOW (AFP)--Russia and China will hold joint military exercises next month, a top Russian military official said Monday, as the giant neighbors work towards tighter cooperation.

"The head of the Russian and Chinese military delegations agreed that 1,300 soldiers from each side would participate," said the deputy army chief Lieutenant General Sergei Antonov, adding 20 Russian war planes would take part.

The massive five-day exercises, dubbed Peace Mission 2009, are to focus on anti-terrorism and will take place on both countries' territories July 22-26, Antonov told the ITAR-TASS state news agency. The two countries are in their third round of talks to hammer out the details of the joint manoeuvres, he said.

Russia and China made a show of their strengthening ties last month when Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Moscow for a major bilateral summit. The friendly diplomacy is a marked change from the later decades of the Cold War era, when the Soviet Union and China clashed for supremacy in the Communist world.

In recent years, the countries have taken great strides to step up trade and put old rivalries behind them, ending a decades-long dispute over their 4,300- kilometer border just last year.

The two held joint exercises in 2005 and 2007 under the auspices of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a regional security group consisting of China, Russia and four Central Asian states.

Russia has also been the main supplier of arms to China since the two countries normalized relations in 1989 - the same year Washington imposed an arms ban on Beijing.

China to launch drill with Russia

english.chinamil.com.cn 2009-03-18

　　BEIJING, March 17 -- China and Russia will launch a joint anti-terror drill in Northeast China this year, a defense official has said.

　　"The defense ministries of the two countries are currently discussing details of the drill," Qian Lihua, director of the Ministry of Defense's foreign affairs office, said.

　　The drill, the second between the two troops, is aimed at promoting bilateral strategic partnership, Qian said.

　　It will also mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of Sino-Russian diplomatic ties, he added.

　　The first such drill was held in Vladivostok in Russia and East China's Shandong in August 2005.

　　In 2007, the two countries joined a multinational anti-terror drill that also brought together Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

　　Qian said China will hold more exercises with its neighbors this year, as it is keen on promoting high-level military exchanges. He, however, did not elaborate.

　　China has strengthened military ties with its neighbors by participating in regional exercises, Qian said.

　　Since 2002, the country has joined 17 military exercises and four ground training drills with its neighbors.

　　The country has sent teams to observe military drills in India and Pakistan, as well as "Cobra Gold" drills between Thailand and the United States.

　　China and Australia will strengthen cooperation in fighting terrorism, disaster relief and peacekeeping, Chen Bingde, chief of the general staff of the People's Liberation Army, said yesterday. He made the remarks during a meeting with Australian Chief of the Army Ken Gillespie.

　　(Source: chinadaily.com.cn)