According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP)
on December 4, China's second Type 075 amphibious dock appeared at the naval base of the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army
in Zhushan city, Zhejiang province
The Type 075 landing helicopter dock Guangxi (32) was launched in April 2020 and started sea trials on December 20, 2020
The ship is scheduled to enter service very soon
The ship is named after Guangxi, an autonomous region located in South China and bordering Vietnam and the Gulf of Tonkin
While the Type 075 appears to be slightly smaller than the U.S. Navy’s Landing helicopter assaul
it is larger compared to French or Spanish Landing helicopter assaul equivalents
It is actually pretty close in size to Italy’s future Trieste LHD
The Chinese Navy officially started development work on the Type 075 in 2011
The ship has a length of 237m, a beam of 43m and a draft of 8.5m
The overall design of the ship is quite harmonious, with an island on the starboard side, the front of the flight deck is ostentatiously blocky and square
The island superstructure area is home to sensors, processing systems, and common communications
It is unclear what radar systems and sensors will be installed on this ship
The Type 075 at launch appeared to have 2 large stern elevator
connecting the hangar deck and flight deck, allowing the aircraft to be brought up or lowered as needed
At the rear of the hull is a loading area with a well deck and stern gate
The well deck is a large, open area located at the waterline of ships that can be flooded using ballast tanks to allow smaller water craft to enter and leave the ship
Type 075 still uses conventional engines instead of installing nuclear reactors
The ship can reach speeds of up to 23 knots, can keep up with the People's Liberation Army Navy surface fleet
The Type 075 is expected to be able to transport 30 attack or transport helicopters, marines, air cushioned ships
armored vehicles and even small submarines
In theory, China's Type 075 landing helicopter dock will not be able to carry fighters
and China does not have any capable fighter aircraft like the F-35B
However, with the ability to carry such a number of helicopters, it is clear that Type 075's sea combat capability is very dangerous
The Guangxi, after being put into service, will significantly increase China's amphibious warfare capabilities
The Type 075 can carry more helicopters than the Type 071, in combination with high-speed boats that can deploy troops quickly on attacking missions