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China Launches Another Monster Coast Guard Cutter
The large, intimidating ship are meant show the Chinese flag at territorial disputes.
By Kyle Mizokami
Jan 14, 2016
China has built a second 12,000-ton Coast Guard cutter, the largest cutter in the service of any coast guard in the world. The ship is as large as a U.S. Navy destroyer and will be used for maritime search and rescue, law enforcement, and territorial boundary marking.
The two cutters, CCG 2901 and CCG 3901, were built in Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard. Each features a single 76-millimeter cannon in the bow, two machine gun or light cannon mounts on the superstructure, and a hangar and landing pad for helicopters. The ships can zoom up to 25 knots.
The huge size of the cutters has raised some eyebrows. While Coast Guard cutters do spend extended periods of time at sea and travel long distances, they don't really need to displace 12,000 tons. Because they're primarily law enforcement ships, cutters don't need warship-quality sensors and heavy weapons that increase overall weight. The U.S. Coast Guard's latest National Security Cutters, for example, weigh only 4,600 tons.
The most likely explanation for China's colossal vessels, then, is simply that they are meant to be bigger and more intimidating than other ships when they show up in disputed territory. China currently has disputes with more than half a dozen neighboring nations in the East and South China Seas. Countries on both sides of the dispute often "show the flag" in these areas with Coast Guard ships, which is less inflammatory than sending warships.
Japanese Coast Guard's largest cutters, the Shikishima class, tip the scales at 9,300 tons. Originally built to provide security for plutonium being shipped from Europe to Japan for use in commercial nuclear reactors, Shikishima and her sister ship Akitsushima have been used to patrol the East China Sea, where both countries claim the Senkaku Islands (also known as the Diaoyu Islands in China.)
Until the first CCG 2901 was commissioned, the Chinese Coast Guard didn't have a ship anywhere near as big as the Japanese cutters. But upon commissioning in 2014, CCG 2901 was immediately sent to the East China Sea.
It's not certain if China will build more gigantic cutters. While their size intimidates, that's pretty much the only advantage of having such a large cutter.
The large, intimidating ship are meant show the Chinese flag at territorial disputes.
By Kyle Mizokami
Jan 14, 2016
China has built a second 12,000-ton Coast Guard cutter, the largest cutter in the service of any coast guard in the world. The ship is as large as a U.S. Navy destroyer and will be used for maritime search and rescue, law enforcement, and territorial boundary marking.
The two cutters, CCG 2901 and CCG 3901, were built in Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard. Each features a single 76-millimeter cannon in the bow, two machine gun or light cannon mounts on the superstructure, and a hangar and landing pad for helicopters. The ships can zoom up to 25 knots.
The huge size of the cutters has raised some eyebrows. While Coast Guard cutters do spend extended periods of time at sea and travel long distances, they don't really need to displace 12,000 tons. Because they're primarily law enforcement ships, cutters don't need warship-quality sensors and heavy weapons that increase overall weight. The U.S. Coast Guard's latest National Security Cutters, for example, weigh only 4,600 tons.
The most likely explanation for China's colossal vessels, then, is simply that they are meant to be bigger and more intimidating than other ships when they show up in disputed territory. China currently has disputes with more than half a dozen neighboring nations in the East and South China Seas. Countries on both sides of the dispute often "show the flag" in these areas with Coast Guard ships, which is less inflammatory than sending warships.
Japanese Coast Guard's largest cutters, the Shikishima class, tip the scales at 9,300 tons. Originally built to provide security for plutonium being shipped from Europe to Japan for use in commercial nuclear reactors, Shikishima and her sister ship Akitsushima have been used to patrol the East China Sea, where both countries claim the Senkaku Islands (also known as the Diaoyu Islands in China.)
Until the first CCG 2901 was commissioned, the Chinese Coast Guard didn't have a ship anywhere near as big as the Japanese cutters. But upon commissioning in 2014, CCG 2901 was immediately sent to the East China Sea.
It's not certain if China will build more gigantic cutters. While their size intimidates, that's pretty much the only advantage of having such a large cutter.
