China Maritime Report No. 16: Chinese Ferry Tales: The PLA's Use of Civilian Shipping in Support of Over-the-Shore Logistics

Authors

J. Michael Dahm

Files

Description

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has long provided indications it will use civilian shipping in direct support of a cross-strait invasion of Taiwan. To date, however, there has been little effort to gauge the PLA’s actual ability to leverage China’s commercial fleet in the most challenging part of any such campaign—operations over-the-shore. Drawing from ship tracking data, satellite imagery, media reporting, and the writings of PLA experts, this report analyzes recent military-civil fusion exercises and training to assess current capabilities.

Publication Date

November, 2021

Publisher

China Maritime Studies Institute, U.S Naval War College

City

Newport, Rhode Island

Keywords

China, China Maritime Studies Institute, CMSI, People’s Liberation Army, Taiwan, Invasion, Civilian, Littoral

Recommended Citation

Dahm, J. Michael, "China Maritime Report No. 16: Chinese Ferry Tales: The PLA's Use of Civilian Shipping in Support of Over-the-Shore Logistics" (2021). CMSI China Maritime Reports. 16.
https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/cmsi-maritime-reports/16