Recently, reports on China’s first domestic fixed-wing long-range shore-based anti-submarine patrol aircraft-Y-8Q (also called Gaoxin-6 (High-Tech No. 6) or KQ-200) become intensive, and two days ago, CCTV’s “Military Report” column rarely exposed its standard anti-submarine weapon – an air-dropped self-guided depth charge, which is a highly cost-effective anti-submarine weapon unique to China and Russia.
Y-8Q anti-submarine patrol aircraft has witnessed great improvements based on Y-8 high-tech special aircraft platform, especially for the loading of anti-submarine self-guided torpedoes, depth bombs and air-dropped depth charges, it has a large weapon cabin and has undergone a substantial modification of the fuselage structure, according to military analyst “Wulong Defense Review”.
“Military Report” disclosed for the first time that Y-8Q anti-submarine aircraft carried a new weapon different from the common Yu-7 anti-submarine air-dropped self-guided torpedo, that is, an air-dropped depth charge with a self-guided system, compared to a 324mm Yu-7. Its size is much smaller, one Y-8Q can carry many of them. Besides, compared to high cost of torpedoes, air-dropped depth charges are unpowered, without complicated motors and steering gears, and its acoustic self-guided device is much simpler than passive sonar seekers on torpedoes and therefore much cheaper.
In appearance, this newly-developed air-dropped depth charge is very similar to the Russia’s “ZAGON-2” (Загон-2), which weighs 120 kg with a 35 kg warhead. Its shaped high-explosive jet can penetrate the pressure hull of a nuclear submarine and it has a parachute at the tail. After being throwed into the sea, it can suspend in the sea or at a certain depth for about 4 minutes. Once the actively launched acoustic self-guide system locks the enemy submarine below it, it will fall freely, sinking and damaging it. Its maximum combat depth can reach 600 meters.
Compared to anti-submarine torpedoes, the lack of mobility of this air-dropped depth bomb is a disadvantage. But when combined with Y-8Q, its power can be amplified. By its huge magnetic anomaly detector at its tail and the sonar buoy placed on the sea surface, Y-8Q anti-submarine warfare aircraft can lock the enemy submarine trail, and then throw on the enemy submarine en route a large number of such air-dropped depth charges, which make enemy submarines nowhere to escape.
Judging from the video released by “Military Report”, such air-dropped self-guided depth charges can also attack water or even ground targets. A Y-8Q anti-submarine warfare aircraft can project such a depth charge at a target on the island. As Y-8Q has an advanced large-scale sea search radar and airborne fire control computers, it can throw this weapon at a submarine sailing on the surface, and the effect is equivalent to the accurate projection of a free-falling unguided air bomb on the impact point solved by a fighter using an onboard fire control computer, which is cheap and sufficient.
