CCP Enlists Civilian Ferries and Cargo Ships for the Invasion of Taiwan

Lonnie Henley, a retired career intelligence officer and China specialist, told the U.S.-China commission this year that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is planning invasions that rely less on warships but more on civilian vessels. This concept is now being practice by the CCP forces.

The CCP’s military has been using civilian roll-on/roll-off (RORO) vehicle carriers and car ferries to conduct transport exercises including routine personnel and equipment transport, and has incorporated with civilian shipping agencies as auxiliary units of the military.

The Bohai Ferry Group, which operates large RORO ships across the Yellow Sea, became the Eighth Transport Group of the strategic support fleet. The Hainan Strait Shipping Co has been established as the Ninth Transport Group, and the CSC RoRo Logistics Co. has been established as the Fifth Transport Group, with some of its vehicle carriers were built with defense specifications.

China’s civilian-crewed RORO ships combined displaces more than 1.1 million tons of water, which is three times more than the CCP Navy’s entire amphibious assault fleet and larger than all of the U.S. Navy’s amphibious assault ships combined. If Hong Kong’s RORO carriers are added, its sealift capacity will reach nearly 1.5 million tons.

The CCP’s military routinely practices with incorporating civilian vessels into amphibious assault operations. During the July 2020 exercise, the PLA tested on dropping amphibious assault craft from civilian ferries with modified stern ramps. In 2021, the PLA held a civil-military cross-sea force maneuver exercise using a large civilian ferry with a displacement of 45,000 tons to complete a full brigade under the 81st Army Group Maritime Long-Range Delivery Exercise.