thedrive | China looks to have launched an odd mini-aircraft carrier of sorts that is intended to launch and recover small aerial drones earlier this year. A model of this catamaran vessel appeared at this year's Zhuhai Airshow, where it was ostensibly described as a platform for mimicking enemy "electronic" systems during training exercises. This ship will be able to simulate hostile drone swarms, along with other kinds of threats, such as high-volume anti-ship missile strikes and distributed electronic warfare attacks. It also reflects the Chinese military's interest in operational swarming capabilities, and especially in the maritime domain.
Earlier this week, Twitter user @HenriKenhmann, who runs the website East Pendulum, was able to find a picture online of the ship during an apparent launch ceremony in May. The photograph shows an unusual cartoon shark motif painted on the outside of one of the ship's twin hulls, very similar to what was seen on the model at Zhuhai. This model has received more recent attention as it was displayed alongside one depicting a rail-based training aid that has also turned out to be in operational use, as you can read more about here.
There was a small sign next to the model at Zhuhai with descriptions of the ship in Chinese and English. Available pictures of the sign do not provide a clear view of all of the English text, but part of it reads "Multifunctional Integrated Electronic Blue Army System." In Chinese military parlance, mock opponents in training exercises are referred to as the "Blue Army." This is in direct contrast to how the U.S. military and other western armed forces describe generic simulated enemies as the "Red Force."
Based on this description, and from what we can see of the ship's design and that of the drones on its deck, it's not hard to imagine how it might be employed in maritime exercises both far out to sea and in littoral areas. For realistic training against swarms, it would be necessary to sortie lots of drones at once.
Beyond that, the unmanned helicopters could pump out signals reflecting the signatures of various kinds of missiles, or even just waves of manned or unmanned aircraft. The rotary-wing drones would be fitted with electronic warfare systems to carry out electronic attacks, as well. All of this would provide a relatively low-cost way to simulate swarms, along with other kinds of aerial threats during drills, and do so across a broad area.
The large open decks on the ship in front of and behind the superstructure might provide room for the addition of other capabilities. Catapults or static launchers for fixed-wing drones, including those designed specifically as targets, as well as recovery systems, could be installed in those spaces to expand the kinds of threats the vessel would be to simulate.
While the Chinese military is often discussed as a source of these kinds of threats, as a result, it is certainly well aware of the operational risks that drone swarms, advanced anti-ship missiles, and electronic warfare capabilities pose to its own forces. China's rapid modernization of its armed forces has very much prompted the U.S. military, as well as those of other countries in the Pacific, to work to improve their own capabilities in these same functional areas, especially with respect to future high-end maritime conflicts.
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