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China's YJ-18 Missiles a ‘Major Threat’ to US Navy
(updated 15.04.2015)

China is outfitting new naval destroyers with their potent new anti-ship missiles, which pose serious challenges to US naval defenses.

A recent report from the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) has confirmed the Chinese government's own claims that "the newest class, the LUYANG III, destroyer is fitted with the new vertically-launched YJ-18 ASCM [anti-ship cruise missile]."

The revelations about the the YJ-18 — a latest generation supersonic ASCM — are one of the major takeaways of the ONI's overview of the developments in the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).

So far there is only one Luyang III (also known as a 052D) destroyer with the proper vertical launch system (VLS) for the YJ-18 but China has said it plans to have 10 more operational by 2017.

"This missile, and its air-launched cousin, the YJ-12, are major threats to the U.S. Navy," Lyle J. Goldstein, an associate professor in the China Maritime Studies Institute at the United States Naval War College, told the New York Times. "The major increase in speed makes the missile much harder to intercept."

The ONI report also says the missile is being deployed on three classes of the PLAN's submarines: Song-, Yuan-, and Shang-classes.


The missile has been reported to have "a cruise range of 180 km at Mach 0.8 and a sprint range of 40 km at Mach 2.5 to 3.0"

"Everyone serious about understanding Chinese military capabilities must familiarize themselves with this missile," writes Andrew Erickson, associate professor at the US Naval War College in Rhode Island.

The increased speed and range of the missile, Erickson adds, "together with a sea-skimming flight profile and likely possession of a command data link based on Internet photos, could make the YJ-18 extremely difficult to defend against."

Chatter about the threat posed by the YJ-18 increased late in 2014 as a video surfaced on state-run CCTV purporting to show a test-launch of the missile.

Previously, China relied on Russia for it's missiles, and the YJ-18 is described as an indigenous version of the Russian 3M54E Klub.

Chinese Navy Modernizing and Expanding, Significantly

The ONI report — the first unclassified assessment on China since 2009 — paints a picture of a PLAN that is improving more on a qualitative basis than in terms of sheers numbers, but even so, some of the numbers — especially the build up of the Coast Guard - are noteworthy.

The PLAN currently comprises 300 surface combatants, submarines, amphibious ships, and missile-armed patrol craft. In 2014, 60 new vessels were added to the fleet, and a similar number is expected for 2015. Chinese shipyards produced more naval ships than any other country's during 2013 and 2014.

The Chinese Coast Guard — which has been referred to as "China's Second Navy" — will have increased by 25% between 2012 and the end of 2015, faster than any other coast guard in the world, according to the report.

"Major qualitative improvements are occurring within naval aviation and the submarine force, which are increasingly capable of striking targets hundreds of miles from the Chinese mainland," the report said, concluding that overall, "it is emerging as a well equipped and competent force."

China's YJ-18 Missiles a ‘Major Threat’ to US Navy / Sputnik International

 
Operational J-15s loaded onto Liaoning aircraft carrier
  • Staff Reporter
  • 2015-04-27
  • 09:26 (GMT+8)
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Footage from China's national broadcaster CCTV showing a J-15 fighter's completion of take-off and landing tests on the Liaoning on November 2013. (Photo/CNS)

The People's Liberation Army has begun loading operational J-15 carrier-based fighter jets onto the Liaoning, China's first and only aircraft carrier, reports the Beijing-based Sina Military Network.

Recently leaked photos reveal that four J-15s, developed by the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation and the 601 Institute, have been moved onto the Liaoning, which sources indicate will eventually be able to carry up to 24 fighter jets of similar size.

Unconfirmed reports state that the Liaoning conducted its first naval drills for 2015 between April 10 and April 18 in northeast China's Bohai Bay. The drills were said to have involved a significant amount of carrier-based aircraft training, including take-off and landing exercises, to help pilots gain experience on aircraft carriers.

Though there is currently no confirmed publicly information about the specifications of the J-15, reports suggest that the fighter is based on the Su-33, an all-weather carrier-based twin-engine air superiority fighter designed by Russian aircraft manufacturer Sukhoi.

If so, this means the Liaoning's 180-meter long hangar and use of elevator platforms can store six rows of J-15s and will theoretically only need to move a maximum of two aircraft to get any jet out of the hangar.

Sina Military reports that the J-15 is equipped with two domestically made WS10A engines, which provide a maximum speed of Mach 2.4 — or nearly 3,000 kilometers per hour — and are more powerful than the Su-33's AL-31F engines. Russian media, however, claims that WS10A engines only have a life span of 200 hours, which is about a fifth of that of the AL-31F.

The J-15 will reportedly be able to carry four PL-8 and PL-12 air-to-air missiles, which would make it much less offensively powerful than the Russian-made MiG-29K deployed by the Indian Navy. The reason is because the J-15s performance is hampered by an old avionics system, which if upgraded would make it as superior as America's F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, Sina Military said.

Operational J-15s loaded onto Liaoning aircraft carrier|WantChinaTimes.com
 
China upgraded aging North Sea Fleet Ming-class submarine force in November 2014


Type 035 submarine (SSK) Ming-class Approx. 13 Operational 1970s-1980s 1,800 tonnes All Active


Translated from Chinese
"Ming" class submarines for China's self-developed the first generation of conventionally-powered submarine torpedo attack. It was my main naval submarine force. Although conventional Ming-class submarines have been improvements, but still has lagged behind its combat power. According to the article Here, the North Sea Fleet submarine force and new equipment has been fitted out in November last year, may be the new 039B-class submarines.









 
China upgraded aging North Sea Fleet Ming-class submarine force in November 2014


Type 035 submarine (SSK) Ming-class Approx. 13 Operational 1970s-1980s 1,800 tonnes All Active


Translated from Chinese
"Ming" class submarines for China's self-developed the first generation of conventionally-powered submarine torpedo attack. It was my main naval submarine force. Although conventional Ming-class submarines have been improvements, but still has lagged behind its combat power. According to the article Here, the North Sea Fleet submarine force and new equipment has been fitted out in November last year, may be the new 039B-class submarines.










The MIng sub can help to train new submariners. They will continue to stay.
 
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