March 3, 2005: China, which currently only has small hovercraft (LCAC), is buying some of the world's largest LCACs from Russia. These are the Zubr class craft, which can carry 130 tons (three tanks, or a combination of lighter armored or non-armored vehicles). The Zubrs also carry two stabilized MLRs (multiple tube rocket launchers), four short range anti-aircraft missiles systems (Igla-1Ms) and two AK-630 six-barrel 30mm close-in weapon systems (CIWS), for defense against anti-ship missiles. | Typical Russian overkill. |
The current LCACs China has were designed and built in China, but carry only about twenty soldiers and are used to quickly get troops from amphibious ships to shore. The Zubrs, with a top speed of 100 kilometers an hour, can go right from the Chinese coast to Taiwan, and land troops and armored vehicles on shore areas that would otherwise not be passable by troops coming in on standard amphibious boats. It's not known how many Zubrs the Chinese are getting. These craft are expensive (the price and weapons configuration is negotiable, but the cost is somewhere over $10 million each) and China might only want to buy a few to get some experience, and figure out how to build their own. However, a dozen or more Zubrs would greatly complicate Taiwanese defense plans against a Chinese amphibious assault. | Very fast, can go right over mines or torpedos and with a missile defense capability. Tricky problem. |
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