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CHINA'S refitted aircraft carrier will begin serving in the navy officially this year, senior military officials said yesterday. Fighter jets will soon be involved in sea trials that have been running smoothly so far, Xu Hongmeng, deputy commander of Chinese navy, said.
"The military authorities plan to enable the commissioning of the aircraft carrier this year," said Mr. Xu in Beijing.
A spokesman for the Defense Ministry had said earlier that the carrier would be used primarily for scientific research and training of future PLAN Naval Aviation pilots.
Military experts estimate that the carrier will be commissioned on August 1, the day of the Army in China, and will serve in the South China Sea. It has not been officialy named yet.
Chinese J-15 fighters, which military experts regard as the most ideal aircraft for the carrier, took part in short-distance take-off and landing exercises late last year, the Beijing-based Legal Evening News said yesterday.
The ship will have a combat capability when military aircraft can land and take off from the carrier, reported aircraft carrier expert Zhang Yao, senior researcher at the Institute of Shanghai International Studies.
The vessel took part in four sea trials in the Yellow Sea since last August.
The vessel will be capable of carrying thirty fighters and helicopters, and a crew of nearly 2,000 people.
The Kuznetsov class aircraft carrier was purchased from Ukraine in 1998 as an empty shell and was refitted for her role as a platform for research and training. All weapons and radar systems and other equipment on board were made in China.
China still has a long way to go before producing its own aircraft carrier, because it must adapt to new trends of development, noted yesterday Xu Xiaoyan, Lieutenant General of the People's Liberation Army. "China will need at least three aircraft carriers," he said.
Major General Luo Yuan, a researcher at the Academy of Military Sciences of the PLA, said that "it is entirely possible for China to build more aircraft carriers corresponding to the country's economic strength."
From: xinhua
"The military authorities plan to enable the commissioning of the aircraft carrier this year," said Mr. Xu in Beijing.
A spokesman for the Defense Ministry had said earlier that the carrier would be used primarily for scientific research and training of future PLAN Naval Aviation pilots.
Military experts estimate that the carrier will be commissioned on August 1, the day of the Army in China, and will serve in the South China Sea. It has not been officialy named yet.
Chinese J-15 fighters, which military experts regard as the most ideal aircraft for the carrier, took part in short-distance take-off and landing exercises late last year, the Beijing-based Legal Evening News said yesterday.
The ship will have a combat capability when military aircraft can land and take off from the carrier, reported aircraft carrier expert Zhang Yao, senior researcher at the Institute of Shanghai International Studies.
The vessel took part in four sea trials in the Yellow Sea since last August.
The vessel will be capable of carrying thirty fighters and helicopters, and a crew of nearly 2,000 people.
The Kuznetsov class aircraft carrier was purchased from Ukraine in 1998 as an empty shell and was refitted for her role as a platform for research and training. All weapons and radar systems and other equipment on board were made in China.
China still has a long way to go before producing its own aircraft carrier, because it must adapt to new trends of development, noted yesterday Xu Xiaoyan, Lieutenant General of the People's Liberation Army. "China will need at least three aircraft carriers," he said.
Major General Luo Yuan, a researcher at the Academy of Military Sciences of the PLA, said that "it is entirely possible for China to build more aircraft carriers corresponding to the country's economic strength."
From: xinhua
