China launches first Type 076 universal landing ship

China launched a large Type 076 multi-purpose amphibious assault ship named Sichuan.

The ship was equipped with an electromagnetic catapult for launching aircraft.

The video of the ship's descent was published by Global Times.

This is the first Type 076 project ship built for the Chinese Navy.

The launching ceremony took place on Friday, December 27, at the dry dock of the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard, which is owned by the China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and is located on Changxing Island in Shanghai.

The multipurpose landing ship received the hull number 51 and was named after the Chinese province of Sichuan.

The Type 076 has a full displacement of about 40 thousand tons. Preliminary analysis of satellite images showed that the length of the ship is 263 m, and its width is 43 m.

Thus, it is much larger than another Chinese UDC, which received the designation Type 075 and is being built  serially. The latter is approximately 235 m long.

The flight deck of the new ship is also significantly wider than that of the Type 075 and other amphibious ships in service with various navies around the world.

In particular, the length of this Chinese universal amphibious ship is quite comparable to the American America class, but the width is approximately 10 meters greater.

In the bow of the full-size flight deck there is an electromagnetic catapult for launching unmanned and, possibly, manned aircraft. The UDC has a device for braking landing aircraft, as well as aircraft elevators, including a large one in the center of the stern.

The new ship has two superstructures on the starboard side. This increases the deck area, and also provides a more flexible distribution of space on the lower decks.