Chinese President Xi Jinping has personally overseen the commissioning of the nation's newest and most technologically advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, marking a significant leap in Beijing's naval capabilities.
A Ceremony of Strategic Importance
The official launch ceremony took place on Wednesday at a military port in Sanya, located on Hainan Island. The event was announced by China's official Xinhua news agency on Friday, 7th November.
Over 2,000 representatives from the navy and the various institutions involved in the vessel's construction attended the high-profile event. The flight deck presented a powerful display of China's growing air power, with new-generation carrier-based aircraft including the J-35 and J-15T fighter jets and the KongJing-600 early warning aircraft parked in sequence.
Technological Leap with Global Implications
The Fujian is not just another carrier; it represents a substantial technological advancement for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). It is China's first domestically designed aircraft carrier and the first to be fitted with electromagnetic catapult launchers.
This state-of-the-art system, a decision reportedly made by President Xi himself, allows for more efficient and powerful aircraft launches compared to older systems. This enhances the navy's ability to project power far into the Pacific Ocean, directly impacting regional dynamics in disputed waters such as the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, and the South China Sea.
Shifting the Global Naval Balance
With the addition of the Fujian, China now operates three active aircraft carriers. This number pushes the country past other naval powers, giving it the second-largest carrier fleet in the world, behind only the United States.
This development places China ahead of nations like the United Kingdom, Italy, and India, which each possess two carriers. China's other two carriers are the Liaoning, which was refitted from an unfinished Soviet-era vessel acquired from Ukraine, and the Shandong, which was built domestically based on the Liaoning's design.
Following the ceremony, President Xi encouraged the pilots of the carrier-based aircraft to hone their skills and expertise, underscoring the importance of developing the Fujian's full combat capabilities. All three of China's carriers are named after coastal Chinese provinces, cementing their symbolic connection to the nation's maritime ambitions.
