Please watch this outstanding 2021 computer simulation of a South China Sea escalation of naval contacts ending with a USN carrier being sunk. It’s really superbly done, and will give you a feel for all the players in motion below, upon, and above the ocean on both sides.
“USA vs China: To Sink a Carrier”
886,551 views Premiered Jul 8, 2021
HypOps simulates a hypothetical clash between the United States and the People’s Liberation Army in the South China Sea. A FONOP gone bad leads to a JH-7 shootdown by an Arleigh Burke class destroyer. Tensions continues to escalate, with air battles erupting between American F/A-18 and Chinese J-11 and J16 fighter aircraft with BVR AIM-120 AMRAAMS versus Chinese PL-15 and PL-12 missiles. Hostilities will escalate to the point where China will launch YJ-83s, YJ-18s, YJ-12s and even DF-21D ant-ship ballistic cruise missiles against the AEGIS missile defense systems. Just how much will it take to sink an American carrier strike group?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJXWJ-Px5tU&t=01s&ab_channel=HypOps
Fascinating and scary analysis. Subscribed. The commentary is interesting in that it finds some weak spots in the simulations chain of events. It does illustrate how a single bad decision or failure of nerve can kick off a catastrophic chain of events.