PLA Navy’s Type 076 Drone Carrier, Next-Generation Assault Ship

 

PLA Navy’s Type 076 Drone Carrier, which is under development and said to be capable of carrying Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs).

Type 076 is the next-generation assault carrier currently being developed as a successor to PLA Navy’s Type-075 landing helicopter dock. Type 076 is going to be equipped with an electromagnetic aircraft launch system, or EMALS, for launching Fighter and Drones from carriers. A similar to the US Navy’s Ford-class carriers.This would probably be the world’s first attempt to make a carrier for fixed-wing UCAVs, which comes with its own advantages. First, it requires less maintenance and takes up less space. Secondly, they might prove more efficient than their manned counterparts.

Plan for this type of investment comes after China has emerged as a world leader in the manufacture and usage of drones, fielding more classes of UAVs and UCAVs than any other nation – ranging from smaller swarm drones to ‘Sharp Sword‘ stealth drones and It had also revealed the new WZ-8 high-speed reconnaissance drone. Reports suggest that China’s stealthy WZ-8 and GJ-11 Sharp Sword Drone may be one of the drones being planned to board the Type 076 assault carrier, based on a CG simulation released last year by the China Aviation Industry Group at the Zhuhai Airshow.

The simulation depicted the stealthy drone taking off from a ship having a full straight-through deck, not belonging to the Liaoning or Shandong Aircraft carriers and also different from the current Type 075 amphibious assault ship suggesting it may be the Type 076 next-generation assault carrier. The Type 076 is described as Drone Carrier the Type 075 class landing helicopter dock. However Type 076 is believed to be capable of conducting fixed wing flight operations via electromagnetic catapult and arresting gear. Indeed, the greatest difference between the Type 076 compared to the Type 075 landing helicopter dock.

The Chinese PLA Navy has also been working on an uncrewed surface vessel (USV), known as JARI, developed by CSSC (China State Shipbuilding Corporation), specifically by their No. 702 Research Institute and 716 Research Institute. Rapid development in artificial intelligence has made way for the increased role of unmanned platforms for the purposes of maritime security, controlling sea lanes, and competing for marine resources.