The world's biggest amphibious assault vessel has grown from nothing into an impressive hull in a drydock built at China's Changxing Island Shipbuilding Base, outside Shanghai. Experts say it could launch as early as 2025.

If satellite photos are correct, then the building of China's 076 Class assault ships - called the "Yunan class" - will serve as a reminder of Beijing's rapid military buildup.

The shipyards in the U.S. and Europe are able to refurbish a smaller, older frigate or destroyer in less than half the time.

This will likely fuel the fears of those that believe Beijing is preparing for a major war, likely to be sparked by an invasion of Taiwan.

U.S. officials claim that Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered his military to prepare for the operation by 2027 – a suggestion Beijing strongly denies – but hasn't yet taken a final decision on whether to start military action.

The Changxing Island Shipbuilding Base, owned by China State Shipbuilding Corporation and constructed in 2005, was a massively ambitious project. It is currently in its third phase of expansion and will also be building China's third air carrier between 2015 and 2020.

The shipyard began sea trials for this ship in May. However, the rate at which it is turning out landing vessels now represents a dramatic increase in warship building.

Satellite photos show that the drydock where the new 076 class is being constructed opened only in October, as part of a new port expansion.

Beijing is now able to produce both military and civil vessels with a rapidity that worries its potential rivals and adversaries, especially the United States. This could give Beijing an advantage in any conflict.

Maxar, a private satellite company that provides imagery to the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, suggests it's about 263 meters long and 44 meters wide (867 by 142) - slightly smaller than aircraft carriers such as those of the USS Nimitz and Ford classes or China's Fujian but significantly bigger than new USS America-class equivalent assault ships.

The new 076 class is similar to the "America"-class in that it can carry drones, combat jets, and landing craft. The vessel would be able flood its interior to launch an amphibious attack, and could also conduct air operations using helicopters and catapults.

Since 2019, China launched four of these vessels, the slightly smaller class 075, with two declaring themselves ready for combat in the past year and four more reportedly on order.

The Chinese counterparts are beginning to be concerned about the rate of production. The U.S. Navy is still larger in terms of raw tonnage than the Chinese Navy. The U.S. Navy has almost three million tons of warships weighing 1,000 tons or more. China only has a third.

This includes 10 nuclear aircraft carrier and their battle group - all larger and more powerful than China’s three carriers to date. Beijing's fourth aircraft carrier, which is still in construction, will be powered by nuclear power, giving it a much longer endurance.

The U.S. retains an even larger force of nuclear-powered subs. These include both variants that can carry ballistic missiles and remain unseen for several months, as well as smaller attack subs with torpedoes and cruise missiles.

According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, China now has more warships than the U.S., 234 of which are over 1,000 tons, compared to 219 for the Americans. China now has more combat logistic and support vessels (167) than the U.S. Military: 126.

U.S. U.S.

This is causing concern among U.S. strategic planners.

Beijing's military is largely focused in its immediate vicinity, and would be more so in a conflict.

The rotation would include not only warships but also elements of China's coastguard, maritime militia and fishing boats.

Beijing's ability in building and repairing vessels is what has Washington more upset.

According to a recent slide that was released unclassified by U.S. Naval Intelligence, China's shipbuilding capacity is now 632 times greater than that of the U.S.

Officials in the United States warn that Beijing has access to dozens of shipyards, which are more efficient and larger than the Huntingdon Ingalls facility, located in Newport News, Virginia. This is the largest U.S. naval shipyard.

Beijing has now outbuilt the U.S. in terms of warship construction to an astonishing degree.

China has more than doubled the number of guided missile destroyers it owns between 2003 and 2023. In the last ten years, China has launched 23 destroyers in comparison to the 11 that the U.S. built. Since 2017, China built eight guided-missile cruisers, while the U.S. has completed none.

This naval production capacity will be backed by a civilian shipbuilding industry that is even bigger.

In 1999, Chinese shipyards only accounted for five percent of the tonnage of merchant ships worldwide each year. This proportion has risen to over 50%, with Chinese shipyards attracting nearly 60% of all new merchant ships orders in the last year.

The United States produces only 15-25 new merchant ships every year, or less than 5 percent of global production.

China has also eaten into the dominance held by Japanese and Korean shipyards. These two countries once accounted for over half of the global market, but last year only about 40%, according to data produced by United Nations.

INDUSTRIAL REPAIR BATTLE

U.S. Commanders still believe that they have an edge in many areas over the Chinese navy.

A recent war game run by the Center for Strategic and International Studies based on an invasion of Taiwan by China resulted in Beijing losing 52 surface warships, compared with between seven and ten U.S. equivalents.

These war games showed that China was much better able to absorb those losses than America, due to its much larger fleet, and greater ability to repair.

The U.S. must get seriously damaged warships to Hawaii or San Diego for repairs, as the limited facilities in Japan could be targeted by the Chinese.

The U.S. is planning to begin testing repairs for warships at allied Asian dockyards next year. Most likely, this will be South Korea or Japan. However, India's shipbuilding capabilities have been touted as an invaluable resource during any major conflict.

U.S. Commanders are also paying close attention to Ukraine’s war against Russian invaders. This includes its use of unmanned drones and missiles to sink a large part of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, while forcing the rest to withdraw from the war zone.

Project Replicator, announced by the Pentagon last year, aims to mass produce the latest unmanned system in case of a major conflict with China. The Pentagon's Project Replicator, announced last year, aims to mass-produce the latest unmanned systems in any major war with China.

Beijing also invests in these systems and will be fighting for its own interests.

In January 2023, retired U.S. Navy captain Sam Tangredi wrote that "the side with the largest number of ships wins almost always."

Beijing believes that its overwhelming numbers could help it to win any conflict, or even achieve its goals with no shots fired. (By Peter Apps, edited by Mark Heinrich).

(source: Reuters)