Tuesday, September 08, 2015

China Building Third Aircraft Carrier?



This is not the first time I have heard this.  However, there are renewed reports (Avleak, paywall, sorry) about the Chinese navy - People's Liberation Army Navy - now building another aircraft carrier.  

The reports state, that like the second one, it will be largely the same size as the Liaoning.  It may well be another clone of the Liaoning with purely local kit instead of revamped Ukrainian/Soviet fittings. 

It will almost assuredly not be a nuclear aircraft carrier.  That takes a lot more work.  However, that will probably be coming in the next ten years.  It will almost assuredly still have a bow ramp for aircraft to take off with and NOT have the emag catapults.  I do expect that the first nuclear powered aircraft carrier will have a em catapult: steam cats are complicated headaches and if you don't need to use it, you won't.  They will almost assuredly have a bigger airwing than the paltry 36 aircraft the Liaoning have.

A functional carrier battle fleet for the Chinese will change the balance of power in the western pacific. 

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