China's new high-tech aircraft carrier could launch in early 2022, satellite imagery analysis shows
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| Image Credit MondialNews |
Hong Kong :A new Chinese aircraft carrier with
technology nearly equaling the capabilities of its US counterparts could be
launched as soon as February next year, according to an analysis of satellite
imagery by a Washington-based think tank.
In images provided by Center for Strategic and International
Studies (CSIS), the carrier -- known only as the Type 003 can be seen on the
edge of completion on October 23, in the Jiangnan shipyard in Shanghai.
The installation of major external and internal components,
including power plants and the aircraft launching system, appears to either be
finished or on the verge of completion, CSIS said. Only a few additional items such as radar and weapon systems remain to be installed before the vessel
can slip into the Yangtze River, the analysts added.
"Based on available information and observed progress
at Jiangnan, the authors estimate that the Type 003 will launch in roughly
three to six months," CSIS said in a commentary published November 9.
Two large openings are still visible on the deck of the Type
003 in images from September 2021, according to CSIS.
Once it is ready, the ship will be China's third aircraft
carrier and its second to be domestically produced.
But unlike its sister ships, the Liaoning and the Shandong,
experts said the Type 003 will feature more advanced aircraft launching
technology, along the lines of the catapult system used by US aircraft
carriers.
The new launchers will allow China to launch a wider variety
of planes from the Type 003 faster and with more ammunition.
Matthew Funaiole, senior fellow at the CSIS's China Project,
said the Type 003 would be the Chinese military's "first foray into a
modern aircraft carrier."
"This is a pretty significant step forward," he
said. "They've really committed to building out a carrier program, and
they continue to push the boundaries of what they're able to do."
China now wields the largest naval force in the world, and
aircraft carriers are the core vessels of any major power's fleet.
A Chinese navy formation, including the aircraft carrier
Liaoning (C), during military drills in the South China Sea in January 2017.
The massive ships are essentially a mobile airbase, allowing
for the rapid, long-term deployment of aircraft and weaponry to a combat
theater.
But their value isn't solely in terms of combat capability,
Funaiole said. They also have great worth in terms of diplomatic prestige and
"power projection."
"China wants to have a world-class navy. It wants to
signal to the world that it has a world-class navy, (and) try to convince
nations around the region or around the world that it is on par with the United
States," he said. And the symbol of US naval power internationally is its
fleet of aircraft carriers, Funaiole added.
China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, was an
unfinished Soviet-era vessel that Beijing bought from Ukraine in 1998, updated
and finally commissioned in 2012.
The Chinese military used the technological knowledge it
gained from that vessel to build its first domestically constructed carrier,
the Shandong, which entered service in December 2019.
But although China's two initial aircraft carriers increased
its naval power, their capability was still far behind the US, which has a
total of 11 of the vessels in service.
In addition, both the Liaoning and the Shandong were based
on outdated Soviet technology. Those two carriers used the ski-jump launching
system, where planes would simply take off from a slight ramp, while US
carriers use a more advanced catapult system to launch their aircraft.
Aircraft launched by catapults can get airborne quicker and
with greater quantities of fuel and ammunition, giving them an advantage over
planes launched by ski jump, which rely on their own power when lifting off.
The Type 003 appears to have the same catapult technology as
the US, Funaiole said, and may even have advanced to using electromagnetic
launchers skipping the steam-based launch systems still used on all but the
newest of US ships.
With the new launch system, China can field a new mix of
aircraft at sea, including airborne early-warning and control craft, tankers
and electronic-jamming planes. A US Congressional Research report in October
said the Type 003 was expected to have a displacement of around 100,000 tons,
comparable to a US carrier of the same class.
However, despite the advanced launch system, Funaiole said
there are still signs the Chinese carrier lags behind its US counterparts,
which have more catapults, a larger airway and more elevators to allow for
quicker deployment of aircraft.
All US aircraft carriers are also nuclear-powered, while the
Type 003 is believed to run on conventional steam propulsion, which Funaiole
said would limit its reach. "(Although) this may be less of a factor for
China right now as many of its interests are in the near seas," he said.
Source CNN
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