The South China Morning Post (August 22) reported that pictures taken by Chinese military enthusiasts earlier this week appear to show that construction of China’s first Type 075 amphibious helicopter assault ship is moving quickly. The images, taken outside the dry dock at Shanghai’s Hudong-Zhonghua shipyard, were circulated on Chinese social media and showed scaffolding around two separate superstructures above the flight deck, suggesting the estimated 40,000 tonne ship may have two islands. Song Zhongping, a former PLA officer andHong Kong-based military affairs commentator, said the status of the construction suggested the ship would probably be launched in the next few months. Song Zhongping said large Landing Helicopter Docks (LHDs) like the Type 075 could play an even more important role than aircraft carriers in the future. He said “LHDs are a central part of a blue water navy, because an LHD has a full range of weapons with a lot more marine troops for potential ground operations, whereas an aircraft carrier is just a mobile airbase. Each time the Americans deploy their forces overseas, LHDs always serve as the vanguard.”