CSBA "Third Offset" paper

Status
Not open for further replies.
Last edited:
jsport said:
Grey Havoc said:
https://www.defensenews.com/opinion...challenges-during-a-south-china-sea-conflict/
Click to expand...
Those puny helicopters are not saving anything. When you have the DEW and mini-missile technology to protect large helicopters almost to the point of imperviousness and you still dont build large trans oceanic helicopters your thinking is broke. Ships large enough to support the 47 and 53s may or may not survive or be anywhere w/in a useful operational range.
Click to expand...
I would go one step further. I am a proponent of a return of the seaplane. A C-130 or greater seaplane that has an un-destroyable runways; able to operate from the oceans or rivers, offering significant flexibility with a fixed wing cost per mile and cruise efficiency. As you point out, with DEW and other means their survivability is significantly enhanced. Interestingly three Pacific nations (China, Russia and Japan) already have functional seaplanes. China has bought into the German Dornier Seawing ( https://dornierseawings.com/ ) that can act as a means to move people and light cargo between the island chains they have built (also likely a fair covert insert/extract aircraft I would think).
Ironically the U.S. Army Joint Heavy Lift effort (which became the Joint Future Theater Lift program under the USAF Inc., so they could kill it) was indeed a C-130 (eventually A400) sized VTOL with ~1000 Nm range that would have been able to operate in the theater without runways. It was initiated as a means for moving light mechanized forces over theater distances, but the logistics implications of a VTOL C-130 quickly overwhelmed the air mech idea. Sadly the Army fainted at the ~$150-$200M/per unit expected cost and deferred on continuing the program.
I would love to see a blown-wing or other realistic means to slow a large seaplane to very slow landing speeds as an option.
Interestingly there is a recent U.S. Navy research paper that outlines means to develop an entire methodology for logistics using seaplanes and floating dock facilities as a means to overcome some of the challenges of fixed facilities. I will include it here once I find it again.

Study This Picture: Could this Plane Have Replaced Aircraft Carriers? | The National Interest
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Back
Top Bottom