I Like Big Boats and I Cannot Lie…

Because things happen in the world that aren’t the election, I take some looks at big Chinese ships.  At the National Interest, CV-17:

Slowly but surely, China’s first indigenous carrier is coming into being. Laid down in 2015 with an expected launch date in 2017 or 2018, China’s second aircraft carrier may enter full service sometime around 2020. The lack of transparency around the project has spurred a tremendous degree of speculation, down to some very basic questions. As was the case with Liaoning (CV-16),China’s first carrier, analysts have a name problem; no one is quite sure what to call the new ship. For years as Liaoning underwent construction and refit, China-watchers guessed as to the correct name, generally settling on the accurate but inelegant “ex-Varyag” (other guesses included Shi Lang and Zheng He). While some have suggested “Shandong,” most commentators have settled around “CV-17.”

At the Diplomat, the Type 055 destroyer:

Guesses regarding size have ranged from 12,000 to 20,000 tons, with most estimates concentrating on the lower end. Expectations about employment of the ships vary quite a bit, but there is general agreement that the PLAN has determined that it needs a large ship able to operate at great distance from home bases, and that will presumably include anti-air, anti-submarine, and anti-surface capabilities. Like many modern surface combatants, the Type 055 will apparently have features designed to reduce its radar cross section and thus enhance survivability.

Also at the Diplomat, the Type 075 amphibious assault ship:

If estimates of the size of the Type 075 ships are correct, these ships will give the PLAN an amphibious assault capability second only to that of the U.S. Navy. Expeditionary warfare vessels extend the reach of an entire military, enabling distant deployments by concentrating helicopters, landing craft, troops, and command and control facilities in a single platform. Globally, the construction of large, flat-decked amphibious ships has ticked up in the 21st century, with states such as Egypt, Australia, and South Korea getting themselves into the game. It’s worth noting that the United States regularly uses such vessels as light aircraft carriers, taking advantage of the STOVL capabilities of the AV-8B Harrier and the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter.