Japan's Sneaky New Aircraft Carrier?

Despite being labeled as a Destroyer, the Japanese Izumo-class ship hides a deadly secret for China. At first glance, the Izumo is, more specifically, a helicopter destroyer and the largest Japanese naval ship since World War II. But a closer look (the expansive deck, the ability to house stealth F-35Bs) offers a clearer picture: She is nothing less than a covert

aircraft

carrier

. So it is not surprising that Chinese officials have expressed shock and concern. For them, these are not simple destroyers, but spiritual successors to Imperial Japan's

aircraft

carrier

s, prepared for possible encounters fiercer than those of the past in the Pacific.

Except this time, America's stealth fighters and Japan's aircraft carriers are preparing to fight on the same side. And China doesn't like it at all. Dawn of a New Era After Japan's defeat in World War II in 1945, the nation's postwar Constitution took effect on May 3, 1947. At the center of this document, drafted under the supervision of General American Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers, was Article 9, which expressly prohibited Japan from using force to resolve international disputes. This proclamation effectively disbanded the once-mighty military, leaving the nation without land, sea, and air forces, a dramatic change from its imperial past.

However, with the dawn of the Cold War and escalating tensions in Asia, the United States, initially an advocate of Japan's disarmament, changed its stance in 1954. That same year, a new entity was established in place of a traditional army, Japanese Self-Defense. -Defense Forces, or JSDF. For years, the JSDF was strictly limited to defensive operations and prohibited from deploying troops abroad or possessing offensive weaponry such as aircraft carriers. However, as the geopolitical landscape began to evolve, the organization's functions and capabilities continued to expand, often altering the rules of the constitution without directly changing them. The most recent of these expansions coincides with the resurgence of one of the region's oldest territorial disputes, a group of uninhabited islands, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, claimed by both nations.

These tensions, coupled with China's recent increase in defense spending and military modernization, which includes the acquisition of a Russian aircraft carrier and the construction of a domestically manufactured model, appear to place Japan in an increasingly precarious position. This changing dynamic ultimately led to the creation of the JS Izumo, a ship that, in many ways, echoes Japan's formidable past. Defense and aid In March 2015, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force commissioned the JS Izumo, also the lead ship in its class. In terms of size, the Izumo falls short compared to the US Navy's 90,000-ton Nimitz-class aircraft carriers or even China's 58,000-ton Liaoning aircraft carrier.

However, she is the largest warship Japan has put to sea since World War II. With a displacement of 27,000 tons when fully loaded, the 813-foot-long Izumo-class aircraft carrier significantly outperforms her predecessor, the Hyūga-class, which only displaces 19,000 tons. Initially introduced as a helicopter destroyer, the Izumo class was designed primarily for anti-submarine warfare. As such, these ships do not carry the type of heavy, long-range offensive weapons systems typically found on true aircraft carriers, such as large anti-ship missiles or heavy guns. Instead, Izumo is equipped with an advanced radar and multiple defense-only weapon systems, including the Phalanx Close-In weapon system for short-range defense against aircraft and missiles, as well as the SeaRAM missile system.

The Izumo-class project, which has been in the works since 2009, houses a crew of around 470 and can transport up to 400 JSDF soldiers for other operations. On a standard mission, the Izumo class can accommodate seven SH-60K anti-submarine warfare helicopters and two MCH-101 utility helicopters, with the ability to operate up to five helicopters simultaneously. However, the ship can accommodate a total of 28 helicopters within its hangars. Considered a multipurpose vessel, the new aircraft carrier's main task, according to Japanese officials, was initially to strengthen national defense, particularly in anti-submarine warfare and command and control operations to protect Japanese territories in the East China Sea.

Additionally, a vessel of this nature also serves as an invaluable tool in response to large-scale natural disasters, such as the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Rapid mobilization of personnel and supplies can mean improved response times and even increased recovery rates. survival among those affected. Seas of deception From the moment of her inauguration, the ship, a huge flat-topped destroyer, aroused suspicion in neighboring China, which quickly perceived her potential due to the ship's striking resemblance to a conventional aircraft carrier. Although the JS Izumo is officially classified as a destroyer with defensive design and capabilities, China, as well as war experts, began to speculate that this new Japanese ship could be repurposed to launch fighter jets or other aircraft capable of vertical takeoff in the non-terrestrial space. too distant future.

Chinese officials did not hold back their suspicions and even went so far as to suggest that Izumo was designed specifically for operations against them, dismissing the anti-submarine functionality as nothing more than a cover story. The choice of the name Izumo also generated controversy among Chinese political and military circles. The original Izumo, an armored cruiser, was purchased with repairs from the first Sino-Japanese War, a detail that did not go unnoticed. However, Japanese officials consistently refuted these speculations for years. They firmly maintained that they had no plans to use Izumo as an aircraft carrier, pointing as tangible evidence to the lack of catapults for launching fighters and the absence of a ski jump ramp on the flight deck for launching fixed-wing aircraft.

Turn Of Tides Despite several rebuttals to the claims made by China, indeed, in 2018, Japanese officials announced that the JSDF's Izumo-class helicopter carriers, the Izumo and sister ship Kaga, would be converted to accommodate the short takeoff of the F-35B. Vertical launch stealth aircraft. As such, the platform will be transformed into a weapon that Tokyo has not wielded since 1945. The transformation of JS Izumo, the lead ship of the class, began in 2020 and was planned in two stages. First, the ship decks would be significantly reinforced to withstand the additional weight and heat of the aircraft, marked with heat-resistant coating and flight lines for vertical landing operations.

Second, modifications to the ships' bow shapes and internal reconfiguration would eventually allow both ships to fully embark and operate the F-35s. However, this modernization would cause the ships' anti-submarine warfare capabilities to be reduced somewhat. Japan justified these changes to its defense guidelines in the context of the increasing vulnerability of its air bases to ballistic and cruise missile attacks from China and North Korea. According to experts, Japan will most likely take advantage of the F-35 B's extreme surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities to provide weapons-grade targeting information to other platforms, including Japanese or even American warships. In this way, the ships can fire their own missiles, allowing the F-35B to remain in stealth mode without opening the weapons bay.

For Japan, the new class of its own F-35B aircraft carriers signals a major shift in its evolving defense posture and recognition that defending its island claims may require high-level combat against China's navy. Unsurprisingly, the decision to redevelop Izumo quickly prompted Chinese state media to attack Japan's past, boldly declaring: "Japan must not forget its infamous history of invading countries and regions in the Asia-Pacific region during World War II. World War, as if making an aggressive offensive." A move like this may lead the country to repeat its militaristic history." Horizon Since the time of the announcement, Japan has been diligently upgrading its capabilities in the maritime and air domains, with the Izumo-class destroyer undergoing constant upgrades.

On October 3, 2021 A major milestone was achieved: Two United States Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters successfully took off and landed at JS Izumo. This marked the first operation of a fixed-wing aircraft from a ship. war of the Japanese Navy since World War II. The two F-35Bs of the "Bats" of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 242 flew from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, to operate in Izumo. to test modifications to the warship, allowing the short take-off and vertical landing version of the F-35 to operate from the ship According to a JMSDF statement: "We not only collected various verification data, but also carried out "We carried out various training and education necessary for the operation of the F-35B fighter on warships and improved interoperability between Japan and the United States." The JMSDF also released a video showing the F-35s launching from Izumo and executing a successful vertical landing.

Izumo had recently completed the first phase of the two-stage modification. Final conversion work on the ship is scheduled for 2025, while the conversion of her sister ship, JS Kaga, is also on track for completion. The Izumo and Kaga modification comes with a planned purchase by the Japan Self-Defense Forces of 42 F-35Bs, the first of which will begin arriving in 2023. Meanwhile, the Marine Corps' F-35s are expected to The United States continues to operate off the two aircraft carriers while Japanese pilots acclimatize to the use of fighters. The Japanese F-35B operations will mark the first time since World War II that Japan will operate its fighter jets from its warships, adding to rising tensions in the area.

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