Posted on 08/06/2013 10:03:50 AM PDT by JerseyanExile
Japan on Tuesday unveiled its biggest warship since World War II, a huge flat-top destroyer that has raised eyebrows in China and elsewhere because it bears a strong resemblance to a conventional aircraft carrier.
The ship, which has a flight deck that is nearly 250 meters (820 feet) long, is designed to carry up to 14 helicopters. Japanese officials say it will be used in national defense particularly in anti-submarine warfare and border-area surveillance missions and to bolster the nations ability to transport personnel and supplies in response to large-scale natural disasters, like the devastating earthquake and tsunami in 2011.
Though the ship dubbed Izumo has been in the works since 2009, its unveiling comes as Japan and China are locked in a dispute over several small islands located between southern Japan and Taiwan. For months, ships from both countries have been conducting patrols around the isles, called the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyutai in China.
The tensions over the islands, along with Chinas heavy spending on defense and military modernization, have heightened calls in Japan for beefed-up naval and air forces. China recently began operating an aircraft carrier that it refurbished after purchasing from Russia, and is reportedly moving forward with the construction of another that is domestically built.
Though technically a destroyer, some experts believe the new Japanese ship could potentially be used in the future to launch fighter jets or other aircraft that have the ability to take off vertically. That would be a departure for Japan, which has one of the best-equipped and best-trained naval forces in the Pacific but which has not sought to build aircraft carriers of its own because of constitutional restrictions that limit its military forces to a defensive role.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
Huh? Lots of carries dont have catapults.
What IF... the ship was MADE with an option for a future Catapult?.. All that needed is installation to existing infrastructure..?... You know as an UPGRADE.. about a month after launch.. Might already BE onboard in the hold... WAITING..
But the Japanese couldn’t really be THAT smart.. could they?
Be easy to cover catapult deck housings with deck plates.. who would know?
Same gambit with arresting cables for vehicle recovery..
Could easily be done..
FYI
The Rising Sun has been the Japanese *hem* Maritime Self Defence Force * ensign for the last 60 years.
I didn’t know that. I thought they got rid of that flag after the war. Anything resembling it sets off protests in Korea.
“Fire at will, Commander!
Why does everybody hate Will?
Ha!!
Ask Jeff, he knows about these things.
bump
Well then the Chinese shouldn't have any trouble hitting it with their bad-ass anti-ship missiles.
F-35 Marine variant anyone?
we need to encourage the South Koreans, Philippines and Taiwan to build up to counter the Chinese
Fiberglass.
There is really no point. We don’t have catapults on similar function carriers. They need only buy some VTOL F35s and they are good to go. The more realistic question to ask is do they have a high temperature deck to handle them... and they DO! They must because V-22s need the same decking (their engine exhaust hits the deck at close range).
Good point... or an expandable Ramp in the front of the ship..
I’m surprised Japan has not done much more than they have..
BUT Japan is a place where they can actually hold “SECRETS”...
Maybe they have.... and it’s “SECRET”..
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