HONG KONG: With smooth looks mirroring the US UH-60 Black Hawk, the Chinese government’s advanced Z-20 aircraft packs a punch but may make its biggest impact at lake, analysts said as it was displayed at China’s biggest heat present in Zhuhai on Tuesday.
Regional defense attaches and security experts are looking closely at the Z-20’s ability at sea to fill gaps in the Chinese navy’s defenses against submarines.
State media just highlighted the primary military assault version of the helicopter, and on Tuesday the defense showcased the Z-20J military marine variant- a important step towards a full-blown anti-submarine platform, the Z-20F.
China is deploying ever-more sophisticated warships as part of its long-term military modernization, but it struggles to defend them from underwater problems, a skill that many of its competitors have already masterfully developed.
Pentagon reports and Western analysts have long noted that weaknesses in the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s ( PLAN ) anti-submarine capabilities could hurt longer-range naval deployments in a conflict.
The Pentagon’s latest common report on China’s military reform, released in October 20U, 23, noted a marine edition of the Z-20 was under growth.
” The Z-20F is similar to the US Navy’s SH-60 and will provide significant improvements in ASW ( anti-submarine warfare ) capabilities over the smaller, helicopters the PLAN currently operates”, the Pentagon report said.
Singapore-based security researcher Collin Koh said the military’s Z-8 and Z-9 helicopters were very heavy and very light, both, limiting the kind of ships they may run from, their range and payloads of sensors and weapons.
They were also based on European designs from the 1980s that were made prior to Beijing’s 1989 assault on defense technology was put in place.
” The Z-20 is therefore the reply”, said Koh, of the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
Given its potential to get on boats ranging from corvettes and destroyers to plane carriers, he predicted that the Z-20 would immediately replace it as the standard marine and anti-submarine helicopter.
The Taiwan military’s scientific publication, Navy Professional Journal, in December 2022 published a lengthy part on the development of China’s anti-submarine aircraft, noting some of the Z-20F’s features exceeded that of the US MH-60R, made by Sikorsky Aircraft, a system of Lockheed Martin.
The Z-20F’s entry into service will effectively double the current fleet’s range for antisubmarine combat, according to the statement.
Modern anti-submarine strategies involved coordination with ships and other aircraft, tracking enemy vessels with various sensors, and operating helicopters far from their host ships. Most also carry lightweight weapons, such as depth charges and torpedoes, but generally other platforms are used to attack submarines.
Following May’s state media reports that Z-20 had an assault capability and that new anti-submarine designs were being developed, Tuesday’s display came to mind. No date was given.
The London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies recently evaluated international military deployments, noting that China has so far fielded 15 Z-20 helicopters for search and rescue work.
