The upcoming launch of China's first supercarrier will be the largest sea vessel in service with any Asian navy. For the west, it is the start of Beijing's rise to power in the contested Indo-Pacific that cannot be ignored. A new naval power is coming that the western navies cannot discount as minor but a major power shift.
China's Supercarrier Comparable to the US
It is long-awaited when the newest aircraft carrier of the PLAN is only the sixth homegrown ship in China, reported Military Watch Magazine.
Before launching from the dry dock, there have been speculations about entering the sea. An image posted on June 14 had the colossal ship in dry dock at Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai.
Flags are hanging from the ship's island as seen, and they are down from the side, and all around the deck with other decorations indicating a launching ceremony will be coming soon.
Initially, the ship was called the Type 003, but now it's the Type 002 according to the designation.
Except for the USS Gerald Ford, equipped with an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS), China's first supercarrier will be the direct equivalent of the US carrier, cited Naval News.
Another carrier is the Charles De Gaulle of the French Navy, which is smaller and developed with US support.
The US and China are presumed to be the only countries with carriers integrated with catapult launch systems, enabling their planes to take off with substantially more weapons and fuel.
Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System
Advances from the steam catapult to the ultramodern Electromagnetic system are only in use now; the older Nimitz class and the French carrier De Gaulle only have the steam-powered ones. Also, the EMALS is more compact on the flight decks, citing Navair.
Chinese Carriers in Service
Today the Chinese navy has five carriers in service with the PLAN, which are the Liaoning and Shandong aircraft carriers displacing 65,000 tons based on the Soviet Kuznetsov class.
A smaller class of carriers is smaller than Liaoning and Shandong are the Type 075 Class assault carriers.
They are about 35,000 tons and have helicopters and a plane to equip F-35 equivalents capable of vertical landing on the flight deck.
The newer Type 002 is more capable than its earlier predecessors with the latest variant of J-15 Flanker when it goes into service.
Outside it looks like a J-15, but it is alternatively designated the J-15B or J-15T, equipped with EASA radars (electronically scanned array radars) capable of synching with newer PL-15 air-to-air missiles.
Upgrade nose landing gear which is strengthened with shock-absorbing, improved for carrier landing; with a launch, the bar is used to connect to catapult launchers and hook a cable on landing.
The J-15D electronic attack jets with KJ-600 recon plane, including drones, will be available later. One is the FC-31 prototype adapted for naval use will be the F-35 equivalent when equipped on Type 002.
The new ship's features will put China and the US in their own category. Though it will not be fully functional for several years, it the more likely after 2025.
Once China's first supercarrier leaves the dry dock and undergoes trial, and eventually enters service in the plan, the west will watch this ship.
