Boring logistics pictures of the day: PLA's New Amphibious Support Vehicles

The ZBD04 chassis is still in production but its priority has been shifted from IFV to engineering support.  Recently, the PLA unveiled two such ZBD04 chassis based support vehicles: an amphibious ammunition supply and an amphibious armored breaching.   Both vehicles are in service with the PLA Marine and the other PLA Army Amphibious units.  They are now part of the PLA "million man swim" orbat.

 Amphibious Ammunition Supply Vehicles

ZBD04 based Amphibious 122mm howitzer 

  Tracked Armored Breaching Vehicle

Photos of the day: PLAAF's operational Y-20 Strategic Airlifters

Two were entered PLAAF service recently, they are 11051 and 11052

Tuesday, March 01, 2016

China's Y-20 to be put into military use in 2016, experts say

China's Y-20 to be put into military use in 2016, experts say
Source: People's Daily OnlineEditor: Yao Jianing
2016-03-01 09:180

China's own domestically built military cargo jet, Y-20, will likely be put into service in the army this year, a military expert said in an interview with People's Daily Online.

According to Xu Yongling, a military expert, the test flight period for large aircraft is generally between three and five years. Since there have been no bottlenecks during development or manufacturing, the Y-20 will be put into use this year.

The first flight of the Y-20 took place in 2013, making China the fourth country in the world, following the U.S., Russia and Ukraine, to develop a 200-ton military cargo jet.

"This is not only progress for China's national defense industry, but also a milestone of industrial and military modernization," Xu said.

The official code name of the aircraft is Kunpeng, after the mythical bird of ancient China that can fly for thousands of kilometers. However, within the Chinese aviation industry, the aircraft is more commonly known by its nickname, Chubby Girl, named by military fans for its relatively wide fuselage.

Military expert Chen Hong said in an interview with People's Daily Online that the carrying capacity of the Y-20, around 60 tons, is higher than that of Russia’s Ilyushin Il-76, a multi-purpose four-engine turbofan strategic airlifter. The Y-20's engine, aerodynamic arrangement and combat performance are all better than those of the Russian aircraft.

The cargo jet can be used to refit significant special operations platforms, as it has a long flying period and flying distance. The Y-20 is also a good choice for maritime detection and early warning, according to Chen.

As for future military developments, airborne transportation depends not only on the Y-20, but also on other military cargo jets, which China may develop in the next five to ten years, according to Xu.

Monday, January 04, 2016

Boring logistics picture of the day: Y-20 Strategic Airlifter "expect to deliver to the PLA soon"

Together with the J-20, the Y-20 program is also moving forward with more prototypes and "expect to deliver to the PLA soon"

Picture of the fifth Y-20 Strategic Airlifter prototype 785.  It rolled out of Xi'an Aircraft Company last September. 

Must...have...more Y-20  Strategic Airlifters

 PLA 'needs to boost its readiness'
Source: China DailyEditor: Ouyang
2016-01-04 10:030

Large transporter planes, satellites are called for to play a bigger role

The People's Liberation Army will need to make significant changes following a historic reshuffle of its branches, according to experts.

They were speaking after President Xi Jinping announced on Thursday the establishment of the PLA Army Headquarters, the PLA Rocket Force and the PLA Strategic Support Force.

The experts said the PLA will need to set up inter-services platforms and more universal hardware to improve its combat readiness.

Wang Ya'nan, deputy editor-in-chief of Aerospace Knowledge magazine, said, "President Xi has repeatedly stressed the importance of information and joint operation capabilities, which I believe are pillars to winning modern warfare.

"So, the PLA should give priority to developing an inter-services command and logistics system."

He said the PLA Army, Navy, Air Force and Rocket Force, which was established on Thursday to replace the Second Artillery Corps and manage strategic missiles, currently have their own platforms to handle information, maneuver units and arrange logistics.

Wang said these separate platforms should be integrated to allow a smoother command chain. He also suggested that a universal early-warning and control system and long-range transporter aircraft are needed for all services, rather than just the air force.

Wang said large planes like the Y-20, which made its maiden flight in January 2013, and which developers expect to deliver to the PLA soon, will make troop deployment easier, enabling the military to act more promptly and to better respond to emergencies.

He said the army, the PLA's largest branch, should develop a next-generation main battle tank, which he proposed should be highly automated and have better information capability than the current Type-99A tank.

Cao Weidong, a researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute, said that for the army, air force, navy and missile forces to act in concert with each other, more military satellites will be needed as they will play an increasingly important role in obtaining information and transmitting directives among different fighting units.

"The air force and navy will need more equipment that can perform or support long-range operations. For instance, the navy will need amphibious assault ships, large supply vessels and advanced guided missile destroyers, while the air force will pursue long-range refueling aircraft," he said.

Wu Peixin, a military observer in Beijing, said the PLA should develop new individual smart weapons and portable logistics devices, which will strengthen each soldier's combat capability.

Photos of the day: A PLZ83 152mm self-propelled howitzer abteilung on the move

According to Andrew KC, there are currently 21 such 152mm self-propelled howitzer Abteilungs in service with PLA's armored and mechanized brigades and divisions.

Each Abteilung is composed of 3 six-gun batteries to 18 tubes.  With 21 Abteilungs, we are looking at 378 guns available for action in the PLA.  While they might appear to be dated but when guided with modern fire control solutions and the new laser guided rounds, they can be a force to be reckoned with.  In addition, they are inexpensive and easy to maintain, perfect for a cheap army that can't afford a wholesale, across the board modernization.   Expect them to be sticking around for awhile longer.  

1st battery (1xx)

Second battery(2xx)

 PGZ07 Twin-35mm Tracked SPAA providing organic air defense support

 Group photo with Command and Control Communications APCs leading the column

 Troop transports and logistic support trucks

Another great group photo with all 18 tubes viable 

 HE rounds captured in this photo. In addition, the PLZ83 is capable of firing Krasnopol laser guided rounds to give it a greater accuracy

ROC kudos of the day:500 veterans hold parade to show how it's done

500 veterans hold parade to show how it's done
By Joseph Yeh, The China Post
June 13, 2016, 12:36 am TWN
       
       
        http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2016/06/13/469151/500-veterans.htm
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Around 500 retired military personnel held a parade in front of the Presidential Office on Sunday as part of a campaign launched after a video clip was released showing a poorly executed parade by incumbent military police trainees.

Featuring 500 retired military personnel over the age of 50, mostly veterans of the R.O.C. Army, the parade was held at Ketagalan Boulevard around 9 a.m.

Goose-stepping in parade formation, the veterans sang military songs and the R.O.C. national anthem, in a move organizers said was intended to "rekindle patriotism and call on citizens to support national defense," in front of thousands of spectators.

Henry Ho (何啟聖), initiator and spokesperson of the campaign, told reporters that the parade was held in an attempt "to send positive energy to Taiwan society."

The campaign was initially launched after many veterans saw a video clip of a poorly executed parade by Military Police trainees this February.

In the clip, most trainees were unable to synchronize their movements as per training expectations.

Following the release of the video, many have criticized the R.O.C. Military Police for a lack of discipline and proper training. The Military Police are considered to be one of the most elite groups within the nation's Armed Forces.

The Military Police Command decided to replace the head of its training center, after the Jan. 4 video taken at a training center in New Taipei's Wugu District was released.

The Ministry of National Defense (MND) explained that that the poor performance visible on the video clip has "damaged the image of the nation's Armed Forces."

Angered by the poor performance of these trainees, Ho decided to form a Facebook page calling for veterans to participate in a parade of their own to show Military Police trainees what a parade "is supposed to" look like.

According to Ho, thousands of veterans expressed interest in participating in the parade less than a week after he created the page.

Chou Chih Hsiang (周志祥), who was in charge of training veterans for the Sunday parade, said he was proud of the retired soldiers, since it only took them several weeks of training to prepare for the event.

The organizers said veterans came together from across the country and were trained for seven weeks.

Many of these retired soldiers participated in military parades in front of the Presidential Office during the 1980s to 1990s.

Both Ho and Chou, however, refused to comment on the recent incident when a pro-Taiwan independence individual verbally abused veterans by calling them "Chinese refugees" and demanding they go back to China.

More than 1,000 spectators attended Sunday's event, including former first lady Chow Mei-ching (周美青) and Kuomintang (KMT) chairperson Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱).

MND's Praise


　　Meanwhile, in a statement, the MND praised the civilian-initiated parade, saying that the veterans made a move to safeguard the dignity and honor of the R.O.C Armed Forces, and that their efforts can serve as an example for incumbent military personnel.

14th Amphibious Armored Brigade, 31st Group Army, East Theater Command

The 14th conducted a brigade size, live fire, amphibious assault drill last week.  No big deal, that is what they do.  Besides, according to United States Army war College's 2015 study "The Chinese People's Liberation Army in 2025"  (link here)

"Strategic sealift beyond Taiwan is quite limited. China has never possessed a robust capability to transport and land troops under combat  conditions"  (page 217)

Global Security also chimed in on the sealift question  (link here)

First among these limitations is the capability to transport and sustain more than one division of ground troops and equipment by sea or air, according to the US DOD report to Congress on China's military [down from three four decades earlier]. The PLA Navy’s total amphibious lift capacity was estimated in 2009 to be one infantry division of approximately 10,000 troops and equipment at one time.

Or as Patrick Tyler correctly pointed out in his NYT article (link here)

If China has learned anything in decades of conflict with Taiwan, it is that an all-out invasion of Taiwan is well beyond its capabilities. The joke commonly heard among Western military experts is that a Chinese assault on Taiwan would have to be called ''the million man swim.'' 

To perform this historic "million man swim"  the PLA could call up their two Marine Brigades, two Amphibious Mech Infantry Divisions (the 1st of the 1st Group Army, and the 124th of the 42nd Group Army) and every unit of the 1st, 12th, 31st, 41st and 42nd Group Army of the East Theater Command.  No worries, they will be dressed up but with no boat to go.

Click on the vid below to see the amphibious assault drill

PLAN decommission of the day: Type051D "Nanchang" DDG163

DDG163 is the second PLAN ship to bear the name "Nanchang."  She was commissioned November 5th 1982 and now undergoing mothballing to be a tourist destination at its namesake city.  Public opening is second half of 2017.  With DDG163 gone,  The PLAN now has a total of 6 active Ludas remaining, down from 17 during its peak

Of course, the first PLAN Nanchang is much more famous. She started as HMS Aurora, an Arethusa-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy that was sold to the Chinese Nationalist Navy in May 1948.  She was renamed as the "ChungKing 重慶" so to serve as Nationalist's flagship.  Her crew defected to the PLAN in Feb 1949 and handed the ship over in due course.

RIP Corporal Cheng Junhui

Corporal Cheng Junhui dies in demining mission along China-Vietnam boarder
Source: China Military OnlineEditor: Zhang Tao
2016-06-07 18:080

File photo of Corporal Cheng Junhui

File photo shows Corporal Cheng Junhui (left) is ready for a demining operation.

BEIJING, June 7 (ChinaMil) – Corporal Cheng Junhui with the Unit 3 under the Demining Command of the PLA Yunnan Military Command (MC) died in the third large scale demining operation along the China-Vietnam boarder on June 4, 2016.

Cheng was recognized as martyr and was awarded second-class merit citation by the Yunnan MC.

Officers and soldiers with Unit 3 were conducting missions in a minefield with a slope of over 60 degrees on the afternoon of June 4. While, Cheng Junhui took the initiative to search the most dangerous section.

When Cheng was removing the fuse of a mine, the mountain suddenly collapsed and he rolled down to a valley 30 meters deep. Cheng was rescued and rushed to hospital immediately.




Unfortunately, Cheng died of his injuries at 22:00 at the age of 22.

Cheng Junhui is from Chongqing of China. He joined the PLA 14th Group Army in December 2012 and joined the Communist Party of China (CPC) in August 2014. He started to act as deputy squad leader in the end of 2014.

Cheng became a demining soldier of the PLA Yunnan MC after the deployment of demining tasks in Yunnan section of the China-Vietnam boarder in June, 2015.

The third large scale demining mission along the China-Vietnam border officially started in November 2015. Cheng Junhui and over 400 Chinese soldiers have risked their lives performing demining tasks in Chinese territory. Cheng was always fighting in the most dangerous places during those missions.

Up to now, the Chinese officers and soldiers have cleared a mined area of 14 square kilometers and demined nearly 30,000 of all types of explosives.

Saturday, June 04, 2016

Non-headline news of the day: Mine clearance mission along China-Vietnam border

Since 1990, both China and Vietnam have been conducting mine-clearing campaigns along their joint border.  This is to address the legacy of the 1979 boarder war and the skirmishes that followed. An estimated 2 million landmines were laid during the war.


According to China daily:

Around 6,000 people, aged between eight and 84, have been injured or disabled in Wenshan prefecture, 600 meters away from the frontier at the nearest, since 1979 after stepping on the landmines, which also killed a number of wild animals and livestock, Yunnan.cn reported in 2011.

In Funing county of Wenshan prefecture, one or two people are still hurt every year by landmines, despite many mine clearance projects and warnings and fences set up around mine fields and its Tianpeng village, 600 meters from the China-Vietnam border, was once infamous in China for having "87 villagers with only 78 legs"

 

Note the mine-protection shoes he is wearing.