Experts say hi-tech Fujian will help expand country’s military influence and reach farther beyond its own waters
China’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier officially entered service this week, signalling a new era in Chinese military expansion after a ceremony overseen by the country’s leader, Xi Jinping, state media has confirmed.
The Fujian is China’s first domestically designed and built aircraft carrier, and the third for China’s rapidly expanding navy, which is already the world’s biggest by ship count.
The advanced features on the new ship include an electromagnetic launch system that causes less stress to the aircraft and the ship, and allows for more precise control over speed. It can also launch a wider range of aircraft than the steam system used on most US carriers.
The vessel is one of the most high profile signs of Xi’s long-running efforts to overhaul and modernise the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and it joins the older Soviet designed and built Liaoning, and the Soviet-designed but Chinese-built Shandong, in active service. China now has the second most carriers in the world, ahead of the UK, India and Italy – who have two each – but still far behind its key rival the US, which has 11.
