China has recently launched the newest and superior aircraft, the Fujian carrier, which has been seen sailing in the Taiwan Strait for the first time to undergo sea trials, marking a major milestone for the operations of the new aircraft carrier. The 003 carrier ship came with advanced electromagnetic aircraft launching gadgets and traveled the sensitive waterway towards the South China Sea, where they would have carried out tests, training, and development.
The Strait of Hormuz recorded the first transit of Taiwan
The People’s Liberation Navy (PLAN) carrier Fujian (018) was sailing southwest through the East China Sea, about 124 miles northwest of Uotsuri Island, according to the information given by the Joint Staff Office of Japan. The carrier had to do the journey alongside two destroyers, CNS Hangzhou (136) and CNS Jinan (152), and there was surveillance of the group via a Japanese Aircraft, P-3C, named Orion Maritime Patrol.
According to Senior Capt. Leng Guowei, the spokesperson of the PLAN, the ship Fujian, undertook a scientific research, testing, and training trip on crossing the Taiwan Strait to the relevant waters of the South China Sea. Trans-area testing and training is an elements of the carrier-building procedure, which the spokesperson insisted on.
Tuesday, the Defense Ministry trickster of China affirmed the transit when Jiang Bin said Fujian had sent a ship to carry out testing and training. He further elaborated that this was a regular flow of arrangements and part of the development of the aircraft carrier, which is proposed in accordance with the applicable international law, as well as international practice.
State-of-the-art electromagnetic launch technology
The Fujian is a significant new technological advancement in the Chinese naval force, being the second in the world to have the electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS), right after the USS Gerald R. Ford of the U.S Navy. EMALS-like systems driven by monorails and high-speed roller coasters are designed with low crewing and maintenance needs in comparison to Payneham steam catapult-propelled systems of the past.
This was supported by the imagery which Japan released by its Joint Staff Office depicting the clean flight deck deprived of an aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft support vehicles, suggesting the ship is still in its testing stage. On Wednesday, the Fujian began exiting Jiangnan Shipyard, Shanghai, after undergoing maintenance; this was after the eighth sea test in May.
Speculation is enhanced
China has remained secret regarding the location and date of commissioning of the carrier, though there are speculations that it could be over dates of historical events. It is speculated that the date of commissioning of Fujian will bear some historical importance to China: the date of the Manchurian Incident in 1931 or the national day of the People’s Republic of China.
The national day of China is October 1, and the anniversary of the Manchurian Incident, which is a false flag operation that prompted the beginning of the Japanese invasion of China, will take place on September 18. As the commissioning is near, the analysts think that the ceremony can be held in Yulin Naval Base in Hainan, where carrier CNS Shandong is stationed.
Air wing and operational capabilities
Fujian is expected to become the third operational carrier in the PLAN that operates with CNS Liaoning (16) and Shandong (17) after it is commissioned. It is expected that the carrier will have up to 40 fixed-wing aircraft and 12 helicopters, such as J-35 stealth fighter, J-15T fighter, J-15DT electronic attack aircraft, and KJ-600 Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft.
Successive development of the blue-water navigation capability in China and passage over the Taiwan Strait constitutes a technical achievement as well as a strategic indicator. The advanced systems of the carrier and constant trials make it one of the bases of the growing maritime activity of China in the regional waters.