Look closely at some of the biggest naval vessels coming out of Chinese shipyards and you might notice something unusual.
Where many of the world’s warships and coast guard vessels have hulls with roundly sloping sides, the Chinese navy’s new Type 055 cruisers and the Chinese coast guard’s patrol ship Haixun both feature slab-like flat portions along their hulls.
Those flat sides aren’t an aesthetic choice, according to Jerry Hendrix, an American naval expert and author of the new book To Provide and Maintain a Navy.
They’re for what sailors calls “shouldering.” That is, muscling into a rival ship and forcing it to change course.
“I believe the Chinese have designed two ships, specifically ... to move Americans out of the way,” Hendrix said.
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WNU Editor: The navies in the region (the U.S. Navy included) better get ready for these big ships from China.
