Chinese aircraft carrier program

Pdf file

http://www.sinodefence.com/research/aircraft-carrier/China_Aircraft_Carrier_Ambition.pdf

One web site says China couldn't design itself a decent powerplant and settled with an inferior power plant for the Shi Lang.

US Senator Webb is on news saying "China is a THREAT"......then later news says "40 ship Chinese Armada near Japan".....and shows a picture of what appears to be a new Chinese ship in the ocean....must be burning COAL to propel itself....much much smoke.

A one eyed pilot could find that ship in the Pacific without any electronics....poor Chinese are about to get slaughtered.

There will be an orchestrated event to start the war....it will start soon.

Air power even from a smoky ship is an advantage in war.

Their first carrier might be total rubbish, but the experience of using it will teach them a little about carrier warfare.

If they learn the right lessons their next carrier will be much better.

Their carriers don't need to be Nimitz class super carriers sailing everywhere at 45 knots, they just need a few aircraft capable ships to extend the range their air cover operates... whether that is to Japan or to Taiwan... don't know and don't really care.

They know and they will be working towards it.

There are only a few reasons for them to want carriers... and they are the same reasons anyone wants carriers.

One will be to give them a more credible defence/attack against an island... that would be Japan or Taiwan.

A second reason might be they want to be able to stand up to another country nearby that will have carriers... which is the US at the moment and might be Russia in the near future... except I don't think they think Russian carriers will be directed at them, while I am pretty sure they know US carriers will be used to oppose certain moves they might make.

A Third reason is their global expansion of investment.

I caught a short BBC program the other day that was talking about the growing China.
They started their series traveling across Africa talking about Chinese investment in the area and the guy doing the reporting said something amusing... but I doubt he noticed it was amusing. He was talking about the "threat" of chinese investment in africa where it was competing with the west. He then said that when the Chinese invested in other parts of Africa where the west was not interested their investment was doing some good.

Now from my perspective that sounds like he was saying Chinese investment in Africa is helping africa and is good... except when they are competing with the west presumably the west is vying for resources and competition from China is seen as a threat.

It seems that a market economy and good health competition is not really a good thing for the BBC and the west. Something is a threat if it threatens western interests even if it benefits the locals in Africa by investing even in places where the West is plainly not interested.

Amusing.

Imagine what will happen when the Chinese have a carrier they can send to use in gunboat diplomacy like the Brits did in China not that long ago.

Perhaps Chinese gangs taking opium from Asia to Britain to help control the masses with illegal drugs is their next move to mirror what the civilised west has done in its murky past?

Chinese really are making carrier based planes namely J-11 & J-15 (both are SU-33 copies); but what it tells us is that Chinese are going for naval expansionism. Plus they also possess a decent CIWS system namely Type 730
http://defencedog.blogspot.com/2011/05/ciws-systems-worldwide.html

Looks like maybe somebody messed with China's aircraft carrier:

http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?ID=201106300040&Type=aTOD

Won't see it's first test run for 2 more months. Hmmm maybe somebody cut the prop off? Welded the rudder solid?

2 month delay...I'd like to know if they have to put it in drydock to fix it....so we can see if anyones special forces got to it.

If it goes to drydock it was likely sabotage.

China commissions aircraft carrier prior to party congress

Central News Agency

2012/09/25 20:08:21
In-Depth Coverage

Taipei, Sept. 25 (CNA) China has chosen to formally commission its first aircraft carrier into service in the runup to its National Day as well as the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, an expert said Tuesday.

Chong-Pin Lin, a former vice national defense minister, said China's National Day falls on Oct. 1, while the 18th party congress, which will herald the first leadership transition in a decade, is scheduled for later this year.

Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao need to turn in a credible performance report for their 10 years in office, and the aircraft carrier is one of them.

"The carrier does not have combat capability," Lin said, adding that China's decision to announce its entry into service "is a show of attitude."

He said the move is aimed at letting Japan know the Chinese military's strength, and that it can "overwhelm its rival with such strength."

He noted that China used to describe the carrier, called the Liaoning after China's northeastern province, as a vessel for scientific research, but this time, has clearly stated its use, which he said is "in strong contrast" to its previous descriptions.

"The aircraft carrier will raise the level of modernization of China's overall naval operational forces," China's Defense Ministry said on its website.

The Liaoning will help "effectively protect national sovereignty, security and development interests," it said.

The Liaoning is an old aircraft carrier that China bought from Ukraine in 1998.

Commenting on the significance of China's first aircraft carrier, Chinese scholar Li Daguang said it will turn China's navy into a strategic force, raise the country's world stature and show its unswerving determination to defend the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.

He said that strategic intimidation will be more significant than the vessel's real combat capability, especially in the sense of safeguarding national security and interests.

He said that China has displayed the carrier several times, which is aimed at showing the Japanese government squarely that Japan should retract its stance on the disputed island group or face dire consequences.

The Diaoyu Islands, called the Senkaku Islands in Japan, are currently administered by Japan but are also claimed by Taiwan and China.

Japan's recent move to nationalize the island chain by purchasing three of the islets from private ownership has triggered strong protests from Taiwan and China.

(By Tsai Su-jung and Lilian Wu)
ENDITEM/J



http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/library/news/china/2012/china-120925-cna01.htm?_m=3n.002a.615.dd0ao031i6.k3d

On 21 May 2012, Taiwan's intelligence chief Tsai Teh-sheng told the Legislative Yuan that the PLA Navy plans to build two carriers, scheduled to start construction in 2013 and 2015 and launch in 2020 and 2022 respectively. On 24 April 2013 Chinese Rear Admiral Song Xue confirmed that China will build more carriers and these will be larger and will carry more fighter-planes than the Liaoning.

Can someone tell me if there is some progress?
Or if they may even started building them?

Liaoning battle group:

Taipei, May 4 (CNA) Escort ships for China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, are quietly assembling at Qingdao Harbor and the carrier battle group is suspected to be sailing out soon, a Hong Kong-based Chinese-language newspaper said Saturday.

Wen Wei Po said in its online version that the carrier battle group might comprise the Liaoning, four type 052C or 052D destroyers, two type 052B destroyers, two to four type 054A escort ships, one or two type 093 nuclear submarines and one supply ship.

The reports also said the aircraft carrier could carry 22 J-15 fighter planes, four to six Z-18 early warning planes and around 12 Ka-27 anti-submarine helicopters.

Judging from the formation, the carrier group could form three lines of anti-air defenses, the first being formed by the Z-18s and J-15s and the second by the Hongqi-9 surface-to-air missiles aboard the 052C/D anti-air destroyers.

The third anti-air line will be formed by the SA-N-12 mid- and close-range anti-aircraft missiles aboard the 052B destroyers and Hongqi-16 mid-and close-range anti-aircraft missiles aboard the four 054A escort ships. The formation could handle 24 attacking targets simultaneously.

The reports said anti-submarine work is one of the group's other major missions, with the outer line of defense formed by its 093 nuclear submarines, and its middle line by the 052B destroyers and 054A escort ships.

The O54A escort ships are each equipped with eight anti-submarine missiles.

The J-15 fighters could be equipped with two anti-ship missiles each. As the Liaoning can mobilize 12 planes in one sortie, 24 anti-ship missiles could be fired in each sortie.

The report also touched on the group's anti-ship capacity.

Its 0522 destroyers are each equipped with eight Yingji-62 anti-ship missiles, which have a range of over 300 km.

In addition, the 052B and 054A ships are equipped with Yingji-83 missiles with a range of nearly 200 km. The flotilla has 64 Yingji-83 missiles.

The nearly 100 anti-ship missiles will form a daunting combat capacity.

The report said the Liaoning battle group's capacity could well overwhelm light carrier formations and non-carrier surface ship formations such as Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force.

If supported by shore-based large early warning planes, refueling planes and anti-submarine planes, it could even counter a single U.S. carrier battle group.

But the report also said that currently, the carrier group still suffers the drawbacks of insufficient capacity of its escort ships, insufficient capacity of its equipped weapons and low capacity of its supply ships.

China's aircraft carrier puts naval ambitions on show

Dalian (China) (AFP) - At a northern quayside China's first aircraft carrier dwarfs nearby vessels, its take-off ramp rising higher than the top deck of the cruise ship at the next berth, symbolising the country's naval ambitions.

Dalian, where the Liaoning was refitted and undergoes regular maintenance, looks out over the Bohai strait, gateway to the Yellow Sea, and beyond it, Japan and the Pacific Ocean.

Beijing proclaims that China's rise is entirely peaceful and it has no interest in hegemony, but analysts say its goal is to surpass the naval capability of Japan's Self-Defense Forces and ultimately rival the US Navy, masters of the Pacific.

That will require a number of aircraft carrier battle groups, developed over decades and costing billions of dollars.

The 300-metre (1,000-foot) Liaoning -- a Soviet-era vessel Beijing bought from Ukraine -- was commissioned in September 2012, and officers have acknowledged that it is not yet ready for combat, with naval fighter pilots taking years to train.

But it is only the first Chinese vessel of its type. Analysts say future carriers will be entirely Chinese-made and ultimately nuclear-powered, vastly extending their range.

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is already the world's largest standing military, and when Chinese President Xi Jinping went on board the Liaoning last year he spoke of building "a powerful people's navy".

Xi has made a point of visiting several military bases since taking office and has said that "being able to fight and win battles is the essence of strengthening the military".

- Naval presence -

Beijing recognises the "symbolic significance of carrier power in generating global standing", said James Hardy and Lee Willett of the British military publisher Jane's.

In the medium to long term, they said, China will need "an expanding presence around the world" to secure its interests in resources, markets and shipping routes. "A widespread naval presence thus will be required."

Earlier this year reports in state-run media quoted Wang Min, the Communist Party chief of Liaoning province, as saying a second vessel was already under construction in Dalian and two more were in the pipeline.

The PLA clouds its activities in secrecy, and the military zones at the tip of the Lushunkou peninsula in the city -- known as Port Arthur during its time as a Russian, then Japanese colony -- are forbidden to outsiders.

Rick Fisher, senior analyst at the International Assessment and Strategy Center, said two rival shipyards produced modules for the next carrier last year, one a "slice" of hull and the other a bow.

- Chinese dream -

China has long proclaimed itself as rising peacefully and insists that its military expansion is purely to defend itself.

Washington has 10 aircraft carriers at its disposal, soon to rise to 11 when the USS Gerald R Ford enters service.

For its part Tokyo -- which since its World War II defeat has been constitutionally barred from having a military, and instead maintains a "Self-Defense Force" -- will soon have a helicopter carrier of its own, which could potentially be adapted to carry vertical take-off fighter jets.

But in recent months Beijing has asserted itself ever more aggressively in maritime territorial disputes with Japan in the East China Sea and several southeast Asian nations in the South China Sea, raising fears of clashes.

It has four ships taking part in the US-led Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) joint exercises off Hawaii, which analysts have touted as a step towards improving military ties, and visiting US Admiral Jonathan Greenert was given a tour of the Liaoning earlier this month.

But Beijing also sent a surveillance ship to spy on the RIMPAC drills, according to US reports citing the US Navy.

China's "behaviour in its near seas and its territorial claims suggest that it is going to robustly defend its 'core interests'", said the Jane's specialists.

"As a wide spectrum blue water force, you can say that China is closing the gap on Japan in most areas and outpacing it in others," they added.

"The PLA has substantial offensive capabilities in the form of ballistic and cruise missiles, fast jets, bombers, amphibious forces, heavy armour, destroyers, frigates and so on, so the idea that it is armed just for self-defence doesn't really wash."

By 2030 China could have four or possibly five aircraft carriers in service, including the Liaoning, says Fisher, and could ultimately decide to build as many as 10.

It will be the culmination of decades of ambition, he said, describing Mao Zedong and other Chinese leaders' denunciations of the US and Soviet Union for their "imperialist" military capabilities in the 1950s and 60s as "a reflection of their intense envy".

"Mao always wanted to have a superpower level of global influence but was also quite happy to condemn those who had it, when he did not," he said.

"All of Mao's successors have worked to fulfil a dream of future Chinese strategic dominance."

Recently featured imagery on Chinese internet forums appears to indicate — with the usual caveats — what China’s first indigenous aircraft carrier might look like. Apparently taken at a shipping exhibition held in China’s Guangdong province from June 6-8, the same exhibition where a model of a possible new variant of the Type 032 Qing-class submarine was displayed, the pictures of the model aircraft carrier may possibly provide some insight into China’s naval ambitions.

China currently has one aircraft carrier, the Soviet-designed Admiral Kuznetsov-class Liaoning (hull number 16), indirectly acquired in 1998 from Ukraine with the declared aim of turning it into a floating hotel (as the ex-Soviet aircraft carriers Kiev and Minsk were). Originally an unfinished hull without propulsion, the conventionally powered vessel was taken by tugboat, undergoing a lengthy and remarkable voyage from the Black Sea to China via the Strait of Gibraltar and the Cape of Good Hope. From 2005, China began refurbishing and refitting the vessel, culminating in sea trials in August 2011. Unlike “super carriers” such as the U.S. Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, the Liaoning is not equipped with steam-catapults for launching aircraft. Instead, the carrier utilizes a “ski-jump” ramp to launch aircraft, like the J-15 (derived from the Su-27 family of fighter jets), off its deck. Despite being commissioned and entering service in September 2012, the Liaoning is not yet combat ready and is mainly being used for the training of naval and aviation crews.

The model on display at the exhibition depicts a sizable aircraft carrier capable of carrying large numbers of aircraft, and featuring four catapult launching systems. Notably, in addition to the fighter aircraft and helicopters, the model depicts an airborne early warning aircraft on the carrier deck, providing the carrier and its escort vessels with an integral source of radar-derived situational awareness, which helps expand the carrier-centered formation’s air defense perimeter. The Liaoning’s lack of launch catapults does not allow for the takeoff of such heavy aircraft. There is speculation that this putative carrier will be nuclear-powered, but at present this remains speculation at best. An interesting feature of the model is the hull number, 18. The Liaoning’s hull number is 16, seemingly implying that another aircraft carrier, likely different from number 18 (i.e., a Liaoning “copy”), will be built as well. Such indicators suggest that China is planning to build at least two carrier classes, one based on the Admiral Kuznetsov-class design, and a new catapult-equipped design. It is unclear if and when this new carrier design will be constructed.

China’s aircraft carrier ambitions have constituted a large part of discussions and speculation surrounding Beijing’s naval future. Since 2011, Chinese officials have expressed their intention to build aircraft carriers to supplement the Liaoning. In April 2013, Rear Admiral Song Xue, deputy chief of staff of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), reportedly told foreign defense attaches that China’s next carrier “will be larger and carry more fighter [aircraft].” The aircraft carrier model appears to validate this assertion.

In early 2014, Lianoning Provincial Secretary Wang Min was quoted by Xinhua news agency as saying that the Dalian Shipyard located in Liaoning province, which refurbished the Liaoning, will build a second carrier within “six years,” and that China would eventually acquire four aircraft carriers, suggesting three carriers will be built to accompany the Liaoning. Additionally, recent statements in a Chinese military journal article indicate that the first Chinese-built aircraft carrier will be ready by the end of 2017, with an additional two ready by the end of 2019. The article claims that these carriers would be enlarged variants of the Liaoning’s design and feature a hybrid ski-jump/catapult launch system. Notably, the journal article described the future carriers as using an electromagnetic catapult, like that used on the new American Ford-class aircraft carrier, instead of the more commonplace and technologically mature steam-powered catapult. If true, these statements conflict with the design features depict on the model on display at the exhibition.

While the model features catapults, it does not feature a ski-jump ramp. Nevertheless, such plans as stated in the journal article have come under scrutiny by some Western analysts, who find the timeframe for construction too ambitious. Irrespective of how many aircraft carriers (of any type) China builds by the beginning of the next decade, the 2014 edition of the Pentagon’s annual report to Congress on China’s military capabilities stated that “The first Chinese-built carrier will likely be operational sometime at the beginning of the next decade.” Notably, the report says that the carrier “will likely be operational” – not built, “sometime at the beginning of the next decade.” Given that China’s most recent surface combatant class, the Luyang III/052D-class, took almost two years to get the first vessel commissioned after being launched, a new large vessel as complex as a new aircraft carrier featuring new systems, will likely take a number of years to become operational, let alone ready for combat. The Pentagon’s report does not indicate whether this “first Chinese-built carrier” will be based on the Admiral Kuznetsov-class design – a Liaoning “copy” – or a brand new carrier design, like the one in the model on display at the exhibition.

It is possible that the model recently depicted in imagery on Chinese internet forums may be just that – a model of a possible design, not one actually being built. Yet it would still serve as an indicator of China’s naval ambitions, if not its actual plans. Models are not built or displayed without purpose, and while propaganda is a distinct possibility, analysts have noted that displayed models of Chinese designs should be taken seriously, as they tend to be a harbinger of things to come. Should China build launch catapult-equipped aircraft carriers, it would be able to provide extended air defense and early warning capabilities over its naval formations, as well as enable the PLAN to effectively carry out expeditionary warfare through airstrikes. The building of a significant number of aircraft carriers will also indicate a greater emphasis, but likely not a shift, towards sea control. This stands in contrast to the current dominant focus on anti-access area-denial (A2/AD), a sea denial strategy manifested by China’s focus on ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as submarines. Time will tell what China’s naval future will be, but this model of a new aircraft carrier design could be a useful indicator of that trajectory.

China begins building first indigenous aircraft carrier: report
2014/09/19 17:50:50

Hong Kong, Sept. 19 (CNA) China has begun the construction of its first indigenously designed aircraft carrier that is expected to be finished by 2020, according to Canada-based military magazine Kanwa Defense Review.

The secretive construction of the flattop, known as "001A," is underway in the port city of Dalian in northeast China's Liaoning province after its steel-cutting ceremony was held in late 2013, the Chinese-language magazine reported.

Compared with the design of China's first aircraft carrier "Liaoning," the 001A will see an improvement in radar and weapon systems and living facilities, the report said, citing anonymous sources with knowledge of the project.

Andrei Chang, the founder of Kanwa Defense Review, told CNA in an interview on Friday that China's first indigenous aircraft carrier uses boiler and steam turbine technologies from Ukraine, but he said no Ukrainian officials are involved in the construction.

China has already commissioned its first aircraft carrier, the "Liaoning," which was rebuilt from the former Soviet vessel the "Varyag" purchased from Ukraine in 1998.

It underwent years of refitting to install engines and weapons, and it had year-long sea trials, according to China's Xinhua news agency.

(By Chang Chien and Jeffrey Wu)
ENDITEM/ls

I　have more expectation in type 002 than type 001A

Future Chinese aircraft carriers

from Chinese net

17 （type 001A) is same as the pic steam power ski jump J15


18 (type 002) carrier-based aircraft J15 or 31001 still not sure steam power steam catapult



no infromation about 19 ( some source say it will be still type 002 ,some source say type 003 ) china has already reserched electromagnetic catapult on 2011




17 group include aircraft carrier（18） type 055 destroyer type 054B frigate 093B nuclear submarine new fleet depot ship


hope I can see this group soon

one pic of group 16

Superb!

Leaked Reports on China Building Second Aircraft Carrier Taken Off Websites

Confirmed: China Building New Aircraft Carrier... Possibly Nuclear Powered

China has confirmed that it is building a unique aircraft carrier, and that it may even be nuclear-powered.

On Thursday, huanqiu.com, the Chinese-language version of local Global Times, published an internal document of the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation. The report states that the company’s “priority missions” are to build nuclear submarines and an aircraft carrier. It also mentions that progress on these projects has been steady.

“The priority missions of building the aircraft carrier and nuclear-submarines have been carried out smoothly and with outstanding results,” the document states, according to a translation provided by Taiwanese media outlets.

The Taiwanese reports go on to say that the document suggests that China’s first homegrown aircraft carrier may be nuclear-powered.

Similarly, in January 2014 media reports in China quoted Liaoning party Chief Wang Min as saying that work on China’s second aircraft carrier had begun in the city of Dalian, and Beijing is ultimately expected to build four aircraft carriers. These reports, however, were quickly removed by China’s censors.

The US Department of Defense assessing Chinese military power noted that, “China continues to pursue an indigenous aircraft carrier program and could build multiple aircraft carriers over the next 15 years.”

The Pentagon report goes on to mention that China’s home-based carriers “would be capable of improved endurance and of carrying and launching more varied types of aircraft, including electronic warfare, early warning, and anti-submarine, thus increasing the potential striking power of a PLA Navy ‘carrier battle group’ in safeguarding China’s interests in areas outside its immediate periphery,” media reports.

Assuming it remains online, the Global Times’ publication of the internal CSIC document is therefore the closest confirmation that China is currently building a homegrown aircraft carrier.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/military/20150731/1025269741.html#ixzz3hVstAEFC

China said, that the second aircraft carrier will be a sister ship of Liaoning, but next carriers will be new designs, maybe nuclear powered. Making a sister ship of Liaoning is a good decision, as they have all plans of details from the Liaoning from the time of its reconstruction and completition. This one could be build fast, to have one in East China sea and one in South China sea.

China Building Two Aircraft Carriers, According to Taiwanese Intelligence

China is building two aircraft carriers, according to a new report by the Taiwanese Defense Ministry, as Beijing nears what some experts say is its goal of deploying domestic-built carriers by 2020.

The report on the capabilities of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), a copy of which was obtained by Reuters, says the two new carriers will be the same size as China's only carrier, the Liaoning. China purchased the 60,000-ton Soviet-era vessel from Ukraine in 1998.

China has since refitted the Liaoning, which has participated in military drills, including in the disputed South China Sea, but it is not fully operational. Some military experts believe having an operational Liaoning is the first step to deploying Chinese-built carriers by 2020.

The report did not give an estimated date for when the new carriers would be completed. But as carriers are commissioned for service into China's navy, a command unit would be set up with "the goal to unify power and accelerate combat capabilities," the report added.

Taiwanese intelligence agencies closely monitor Chinese military developments because Beijing has never renounced the use of force to reclaim what it deems a renegade province, Reuters reported.

According to the report, of China's 1.24 million-strong ground forces, 400,000 could be used in combat against the island.

The Taiwanese Defense Ministry's report adds that Beijing is at least preparing for some kind of conflict with Taipei. The PLA and Chinese special forces have held mock battles, featuring full-scale models of a Taiwanese airport, actual roads, government buildings, and even the president's office, the report said.

Ties between the countries have improved under Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou. Still, China has threatened to use force to take back Taiwan if the island ever declares its independence.

Taiwan has been self-ruled since 1949 when Chiang Kai-shek fled to Taiwan with his Nationalist forces after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's Communists.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/asia/20150904/1026571094.html#ixzz3koxuufOx

"China may be building first indigenous carrier

Key Points

* An unidentified hull in an advanced state of construction at Dalian shipyard could be China's first indigenous aircraft carrier
While a conclusive identification of the hull as an aircraft carrier cannot be made until work is observed on the upper decks and potential flight deck, the slow pace of assembly and outline suggests a military hull * under construction
Satellite imagery suggests that China may be building its first aircraft carrier at Dalian shipyard in northern China.

Airbus Defence and Space imagery captured on 22. September suggests that the possible carrier is under construction in the dry dock associated with the refit and repair of Liaoning (CV16), the Soviet-era Kuznetsov-class carrier acquired from Ukraine that is now in People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) service. The new hull, first noted under construction in imagery captured on 10 March, is in an advanced state of assembly. IHS Jane's first noted preparations for a new vessel's assembly at the dry dock in Airbus Defence and Space imagery captured on 27 February. After the launch of a large commercial cargo vessel, the empty dry dock contained multiple support blocks used to provide a base for keel assembly. On 10 March, further imagery showed the initial stages of hull construction. At the time, the support layout suggested a hull of 150 to 170 m in length with a beam of about 30 m.



The hull assembly continued through the summer. Imagery from 22. September shows a lengthened aft section and expanded bow. The hull is currently assessed to have a length of about 240 m and a beam of about 35 m. The incomplete bow suggests a length of at least 270 m for the completed hull. Given the incomplete nature of the upper decks, definitive identification of the Dalian hull as the first so-called '001A' aircraft carrier is not possible."

Shipyard in question is Dalian shipyard in northern China, which is quite big facility.



Their webpage: http://www.dsic-offshore.cn/ENindex.aspx

Source: http://www.janes.com/article/54833/china-may-be-building-first-indigenous-carrier

More Details Emerge on China’s First Indigenous Aircraft Carrier

Workers at the Dalian Shipyard in China's Liaoning province are putting together a vessel that could be the first-ever Chinese-built aircraft carrier.

A section of what appears to be part of a hangar and flight deck has been added to the vessel, which has been the subject of much speculation due to the “no photography” signs around its drydock.

In a photograph published on a Chinese military enthusiasts' website, the vessel features a large open compartment that is three decks high and takes up much of the width of the ship – most likely a hangar for aircraft.

Until it becomes clear whether an angled flight deck is to be installed, it remains possible that the vessel could be either a carrier or an assault ship, as a large hangar and flight deck would be a feature of both, IHS Jane's reports.

However, with a waterline length in excess of 885 feet, if it is an assault ship it would be bigger than a 45,000-tonne America-class LHA, the largest in the US Navy.

The carrier likely will be launched in the second half of 2016, and be commissioned sometime in 2019, Popular Science reports.

It would join what is now China's only carrier, the Liaoning. Beijing purchased the 60,000-ton Soviet-era vessel from Ukraine in 1998.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/asia/20151027/1029197937/china-aircraft-carier.html#ixzz3psCmwR7G

Naval Power: China Building Second Aircraft Carrier

The Chinese Defense Ministry officially announced that work on the construction of a second aircraft carrier has begun in the port of Dalian.

Earlier, media continuously reported that China was building a second aircraft carrier, but without official confirmation from authorities.

“Everyone knows that the first aircraft carrier, which is at the disposal of the Chinese Navy, is the (aircraft carrier) Liaoning. Relevant departments have considered the subject from all angles and then embarked on the development work of the second carrier. At the moment further design and construction of the aircraft carrier is underway,”

Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun said in an official statement.

According to him, China adheres to an independent foreign policy of peace and a defensive military strategy.

“We have a long coastline and vast water area located in our jurisdiction. The guarantee of their safety, the protection of sovereignty, territorial waters and the legitimate interests of the country's seas and oceans is the sacred duty of the armed forces of the China,” he added.

The design draws on experiences from the country's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, which was bought from Ukraine in 1998. It was an unfinished Soviet cruiser Varyag and it was refitted in China.

The ship was named after the province of Liaoning where the docks of the Dalian port were located.

The first sea trials of the Liaoning took place in August 2011, in November 2012 it was announced that a J-15 fighter successfully landed on the deck of the ship.

Read more: http://sputniknews.com/military/20151231/1032542574/china-navy-aircraft-carrier.html#ixzz3vztPpCkb

Time to check into the status of China's second aircraft carrier currently under construction

This carrier, with a displacement of 50,000 tonnes, will be a base for J-15 fighters and other types of aircraft, Fixed-wing aircraft on the carrier will use a ski-jump to take off.

Ski-jump is being installed




so are other modules for the upper half.