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Hongjian -> RE: Naval and Defense News (12/18/2015 11:58:29 AM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Dysta
quote:
ORIGINAL: Hongjian
Aegis Ashore is quite an interesting system. Something like this is what I'd expect China to install on the artificial islands sooner or later, as military pressure mounts against them.
But an island and sea settlement has no natural obstacle to protect with. Worse, deploying an anti-missile radar and battery require big and steady work of ammunition and electric supplies at sea. Even with fortification and anti-ship defenses, the hostile submarine will make short work of them easier with much closer range, than playing course-changing missiles technique like a scenario against S-400 in Damascus.
For air-defense, natural obstacles serve the attacker more than the defender. As you can see from the S-400 example posted in the other thread, the mountain-ridge was used as concealment for waypoint capable cruise missiles to get close the target without being detected. Fortified islands are arguably the best bases for these systems, as they basically have 360° unobstructed field of view. And with radar-blimps and active radar missiles, they will even have OTH targeting capability.
Munitions wise, I'd say a fortified island base is better than a surface combattants, as there are no weight restrictions and hence you can store an entire arsenal of spare missiles in fortified bunkers and have the heavy duty machines/cranes to reload the VLS launchers. Energy would be the same. What prevents one to install one or two gas-turbines on those islands? Sure, fuel is an issue, but so would it be for surface combattants. The PLAN has specifically introduced the Type 904-class of General Stores supply ship to resupply the island garissons. Energy requirements would be less than that of a AAW destroyer, as the energy would only be needed to powering the radars and combat systems, not for propulsion as well. So, when a 128 VLS-celled 12.000 tons Type 055 needs four QC-280 gas turbines with 28MW each, an artificial island with twice the number of the VLS cells and the same Type 346A radars would only need one or two QC-280 - as the island does not need any energy for sailing at 30+ knots, but only for powering the radars!
China is also planning to use wave-farms for powering the artificial island's radar stations and other installations:
http://www.scmp.com/tech/science-research/article/1884420/harnessing-ocean-chinas-military-looks-wave-farms-power-radar
So, in the end it plays no role of whether China would put something like Aegis ashore or a traditional SAM-unit or a Fighter Regiment on these islands. The requirements in logistics and the dangers of enemy attacks are all the same.
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