Beijing: China plans to operationalise its third aircraft carrier ‘Fujian’ this year as it has completed nearly three years of sea trials, setting the stage for the Chinese navy for the first time to operate three carrier groups, official media reported Tuesday.
Fujian, stated to be China’s most advanced aircraft carrier possessing the electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) similar to that of the American aircraft carrier USS Gerald R Ford, was launched in 2024 and since then completed multiple sea trials, accumulating more than 100 days of sea trials.
The entry of the carrier with more than 80,000 tons carrying a wide variety of carrier-borne aircraft, including fighter jets, early warning aircraft, anti-submarine aircraft and drones, will enable China to enter a new era of three aircraft carriers, state-run CCTV reported.
The official daily, Global Times, quoted Wei Dongxu, a Chinese military affairs commentator, as saying that Fujian has been making steady progress in sea trials and is expected to be commissioned within this year.
China currently has two aircraft carriers in operation – the Liaoning, a refit of the Soviet-era ship commissioned in 2012, and Shandong, which is an indigenously built 2nd aircraft carrier commissioned in 2019.
Ahead of its operationalisation, Fujian flexed its muscles, joining Shandong in conducting exercises north of the Philippines this month, while Liaoning has led exercises in the Pacific waters of Japan’s exclusive economic zone, drawing protests from Japan.
According to the official media, China plans to have four to five aircraft carriers, including a nuclear-powered one, making them the frontline force of its navy as Beijing seeks to expand its global influence with deployments in the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the Indian Ocean in future.
Fujian is the “first fully domestically developed and constructed” aircraft carrier with EMALS, while the other two aircraft carriers are equipped with ski-jump take-off ramps. The Fujian features a flat-top flight deck.
Simultaneously, China is developing a new fighter aircraft that can operate from its carrier groups.
Early this year, President Xi Jinping issued fresh orders revising rules to transform the country’s military into world-class armed forces, focusing on combat readiness and war preparation amid growing rivalry with the US and tensions over Taiwan and neighbours.
On Monday, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Yearbook 2025 revealed that China, which has 600 nuclear weapons, is rapidly growing its nuclear stockpile, adding 100 warheads a year in an apparent attempt to match with stockpiles of the US and Russia.
PTI
