China launches sea trials for its next-generation aircraft carrier

Asia-Pacific, News May 2, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

China initiated sea trials for its third and most advanced aircraft carrier, Type 003 Fujian, on May 1, 2024. The commencement of testing by the Chinese navy occurred nearly two years after the aircraft carrier was initially unveiled in June 2022.

According to Shanghai’s Maritime Safety Administration, the naval assessment and sea trials for Fujian are expected to take place in the East China Sea, about 130 kilometers from Shanghai’s Jiangnan Shipyard.

“The sea trials will primarily test the reliability and stability of the aircraft carrier’s propulsion and electrical systems,” read an announcement from the state-run Xinhua news agency on Wednesday.

Weighing in at 80,000 metric tons, the Fujian surpasses the two active carriers of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), China currently operates two aircraft carriers named Shandong and Liaoning. Shandong was commissioned in late 2019, and the Liaoning was acquired second-hand from Ukraine in 1998.

The development of Fujian aligns with President Xi Jinping’s ambition to establish China as the dominant military force in the region. This initiative aims to bolster China’s navy, enabling it to project power extensively beyond the country’s coastline, a concept often referred to as a “blue-water” navy.

*^{Fujian-class Type 003 aircraft carrier. (Image Credit: XiaoxiangMorningNews/Baidu)}*

The Fujian, named after the Chinese province opposite the island of Taiwan, features a full-length, flat flight deck with an advanced catapult-launch system for jets. It had been stationed at Shanghai’s Jiangnan Shipyard, where it was undergoing initial tests.

The commencement of sea trials for Fujian marks a significant milestone in the development process of China’s domestically produced aircraft carrier, a feat that China has achieved in the space of six years. The initial construction phase of the Fujian involved assembling hull segments at a dedicated facility on Changxing Island in 2018, a process that lasted for two years.

By May 2020, partially assembled segments were moved to a drydock for the final assembly of the carrier itself. Construction progressed rapidly for another two years until the carrier was completed on June 17, 2022, amidst considerable celebration.

Fujian has a displacement capacity of 80,000 tonnes and it is China’s first aircraft carrier to feature an electromagnetic catapult and arresting system that enables the planes to take off and land on its deck. The Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System or EMALS uses electricity instead of the traditional steam-powered catapult system allowing advantages in speed and control. The system also takes far less room while enabling the carrier to launch and land aircraft at a higher frequency.

China’s other two aircraft carriers, Liaoning and Shandong, use the ski-jump platform technique to launch aircraft, hence, the inclusion of EMALS in Fujian is a great progress for China’s naval shipbuilding industry.

The new carrier is being termed China’s third-generation aircraft carrier. It is similar in size to the U.S. Navy’s Ford and Nimitz class supercarriers. Fujian is the first non-U.S. carrier in the world to even come close to meeting such standards.

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