The Chinese communist regime’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has fitted a test ship with a prototype electromagnetic railgun, an experimental weapon that could potentially become a game-changer in future naval warfare against the United States and its allies. The state-run media reported that the railgun design, once operational, could be installed on PLAN’s upcoming Type 055 cruisers and make them the “dreadnoughts” of the 21st Century.
On Jan. 31, a Chinese netizen in Wuhan uploaded several photos on Weibo (China’s version of Twitter) showing PLAN’s aging Yuting I-class amphibious ship Haiyangshan (No. 936) has been heavily modified and is now fitted with what appears to be a large turret on the front.
The ship, which was a 390-foot tank-landing ship originally designed to carry tanks and equipment for the PLA ground troops, is now apparently a test ship for the PLAN’s electromagnetic railgun project. This conclusion is shared by many observers, based on the fact that other available photos of the ship also show various visual features consistent with installations in support of an electromagnetic railgun’s firing.
The railgun is an experimental weapon that uses electromagnetic energy, instead of explosive power, to propel a projectile to inflict damage upon a distant target. In comparison with conventional artillery, the railgun has the potential advantage of firing a much faster projectile at a greater distance—a game-changing weapon, especially in naval warfare. An operational railgun could greatly enhance a warship’s engagement range and lethality against enemy ships, airplanes, missiles, and even ballistic missiles.
For example, a railgun-propelled projectile fired at Mach 7 (seven times the speed of sound) could cover 150 nautical miles (173 miles) in just 2 minutes, which would be 10 times faster than a Harpoon anti-ship missile currently used by the U.S. Navy flying at Mach 0.7 speed (20 minutes), or at least 3 times faster than the conventional naval gun at Mach 2 speed (6 minutes).
Projectiles flying at such high speed would be very difficult to intercept using surface-to-air missiles or close-in weapons systems. A railgun firing at such high velocity would also likely have a range in excess of 100 nautical miles, which would be comparable or even superior to the range of conventional anti-ship missiles such as Harpoon. It would also be vastly superior to most conventional naval guns, which typically have ranges of around 10 to 20 nautical miles.
China could, therefore, be the first country in the world to ever have fitted an electromagnetic railgun on a ship. Should the gun be test-fired, it would also be the first navy ship to ever fire an electromagnetic railgun.
In 2008, a Chinese state-owned company discreetly acquired Dynex Semiconductor, a small British semiconductor company that once held a technical edge in the production of an insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) chip, which is a critical component in the application of electromagnetic technology.
The acquisition of IGBT from the British company a decade ago led to China’s leapfrogging of electromagnetic aircraft launch technology critical for its aircraft carrier program, and it could also have led to its recent breakthrough with the electromagnetic railgun, since both projects would have benefited from the advance in the IGBT technology.
Richard Fisher, a senior fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center had earlier commented on China’s breakthrough in electromagnetic aircraft launch systems as “a tragedy for the United States,” since it would erode U.S. military superiority in ways that could alter the outcome of a conflict with the Chinese regime’s military.
The railgun could make obsolete the U.S. Navy’s significant investment in advanced conventional naval guns, such as the 155m Advanced Gun System found on Zumwalt-class destroyers. The U.S. Navy reportedly plans to install a railgun on the USS Lyndon B. Johnson, the third and last Zumwalt destroyer, which is currently under construction. However, there are no plans to fit any other U.S. Navy warship currently in service with a railgun.
Due to the need for a large amount of electrical power (around 25 megawatts) to fire, the railgun is usually thought to be more suitable for larger surface combat warships like cruisers or large destroyers. The most recently launched Zumwalt-class destroyer, for example, can generate 78 megawatts of power thanks to the ship’s advanced turbine generators, which makes it the only U.S. Navy surface combat warship that can theoretically operate a railgun.
With the new electromagnetic railguns, the Type 055 will become the “dreadnought” of the 21st Century, said Cheng Shuoren, a Chinese military analyst quoted by the Global Times. The 13,000-ton Type 055 is also equipped with an advanced active phased array radar system and at least 112 tubes of vertical launching system cells that contain various missiles.
