Appreciate China’s Big New Seaplane:"A good deal of polite Western snickering met the announcement that China was on the verge of building large seaplanes–an “old technology”, scoffed the haters, whose “heyday came and went with the demise of the Pan Am Trans-Oceanic Clipper”.
But at least one Chinese aviation commentator dispensed a bit of wisdom for the doubters:
“The old saying ‘A thousand days the country nurtures its soldiers and all for one day’s battle’ applies to the development of amphibious aircraft.
People say such equipment is becoming useless, but will eventually realize they are indispensable in maritime operations,”
The lesson is pretty clear–don’t dismiss old-looking tech.
And he’s right.
What looks like a useless piece of equipment to many of Washington’s vaunted hunters of “fifth and sixth-generation opponents”, is, in reality, the poor man’s MV-22.
When fielded, these big amphibious planes will do a darn good job of disrupting the modern maritime battlefield.
Tactical Innovation:
Amphibious aircraft make a great, cost-effective means for littoral power projection.
Seaplanes also offer a great way to start building a corps of operators prepared to intuitively understand the speed and range advantages (and the attendant weaknesses!) of MV-22."
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