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Sea trials begin for China’s first indigenously built aircraft carrier
Named Type 001A for now, the 50,000 tonne ship left the Dalian city port in Liaoning province, with firecrackers lit to celebrate the milestone moment .
China’s first home-built aircraft carrier began its sea trials on Sunday and is likely to be delivered to the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) by the year end as Beijing makes rapid strides in a building a world class navy with a global reach.
Named Type 001A for now, the 50000-tonne aircraft carrier left the Dalian city port in the northeastern province of Liaoning early Sunday as firecrackers lit up the background to celebrate milestone moment in the history of People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).
The first sea trial comes a month after President Xi Jinping called for the building of a world class navy during one of the biggest naval exercises conducted by PLAN.
A military expert told the state media that the trials will “…mainly test basic system functionality and carrier-based aircraft will participate in combat trials after the carrier is formally delivered to China’s navy”.
“At 5:30 am on Sunday morning, the aircraft carrier embarked from port in Dalian, a coastal city in Northeast China’s Liaoning Province, with the assistance of five tug boats as firecrackers and the vessel’s horn sounded in celebration. At 7:14 am, the carrier turned around successfully and headed to sea, disappearing in the fog at 7:30 am,” the state media report said.
According to military expert, Song Zhongping, the focus of the first sea trials will be on testing basic systems like power, fire safety and communication.
“Weapon systems and carrier-based aircraft are unlikely to participate in the first sea trial, and combat capability tests will be carried out by PLAN after the carrier is formally delivered to the navy. Before this, its producer may need about six months to finish tests, which means the navy will receive the ship by the end of this year,” Song told the tabloid Global Times.
China is rapidly developing its navy commissioning several fighter ships to add to its fleet. In 2017, the PLAN had commissioned at least 16 ships comprising mostly large combat vessels. It is also said to be building a guided missile destroyer.
The addition of the aircraft carrier will increase the Chinese navy’s reach across the oceans. The ship is China’s second aircraft carrier. The first is the Liaoning, or Type 001, which was purchased from Ukraine and was refitted at the same shipyard in Dalian.
“We’ve already accumulated data and experience during the building of the Liaoning aircraft carrier, and our experts and workers have been working hard in recent months with enough financial support. So I would not be surprised if the carrier is to conduct such a sea trial soon,” Cao Weidong, a Chinese military expert, had told the People’s Daily Online last month.
Indian navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba had told the Hindustan Times last week that PLAN is here to stay in the Indian Ocean and its military movement has fuelled concerns about China’s intent in the region.
Admiral Lanba said the Indian navy was keeping a sharp eye on “the pattern and periodicity of extra-regional deployments” in the Indian Ocean Region. A fleet of 50 combat-ready Indian warships is carrying out round-the-clock surveillance, he said.
“Their (PLAN) headquarters is now used to handling forward deployments. Over the last decade, China has developed the capacity to operate its warships at a great distance from its shores and for long periods of time,” Admiral Lanba had said.
