China's first indigenous aircraft carrier is nearing completion. It is the second chinese aircraft carrier for the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) after the refurbished Liaoning.
The new carrier is still part of a conservative engineering journey for China learning and developing experience in how to design and build aircraft carriers.
China is also adopting a concerted strategy in developing a CBG (Carrier Based Group). They are paying close attention to how established carrier navies operate such forces. As such, while developing the carrier, efforts are long afoot to develop a slew of other capabilities that can help constitute a full-fledged CBG. Notably, the Chinese are churning out new major surface combatants, such as the Type-052C/D Luyang II/III guided missile destroyers and Type-054A Jiangkai II frigates, which are optimized for fleet air defense and ASW respectively. Even more ominously, but often overlooked, is China’s ambitious program to build more capable ocean-going fleet replenishment vessels. In the past recent years, new units of the Type-903 (plus the improved 903A variant) replenishment vessels have entered service. An even more capable successor, touted the Type-901 which is said to displace some 40-45,000 tons (just slightly smaller than the new carrier itself), is at an advanced stage of construction.
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Reposted via Next Big Future
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