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PLA’s Fujian aircraft carrier heads to South China Sea. Is it about to enter service?

Chinese navy says the warship is on ‘routine mission’ as speculation builds that it could soon be commissioned

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The Chinese navy said the Fujian would conduct scientific research tests and drills in the South China Sea. Photo: CCTV
Amber Wangin BeijingandWendy Wuin Beijing
China’s third and most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, has passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct scientific research tests and training exercises in the South China Sea, the PLA Navy said on Friday.

“The cross-regional tests and training are a routine mission of the carrier’s construction process and do not target any specific objects,” said navy spokesman Senior Colonel Leng Guowei, according to state news agency Xinhua.

Photos and videos posted on social media showed the Fujian headed south after leaving its shipyard in Shanghai on Wednesday, triggering speculation that it would soon enter service.

The Fujian was spotted sailing in the East China Sea on Thursday. Photo: Japanese Ministry of Defence
The Fujian was spotted sailing in the East China Sea on Thursday. Photo: Japanese Ministry of Defence
It was spotted by Japan’s Maritime Self-Defence Force on Thursday afternoon sailing in the East China Sea about 200km (125 miles) northwest of the disputed Diaoyu Islands, known as the Senkakus in Japan.
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It was the first time the aircraft carrier had been seen by Japan’s defence force, which said the Fujian was accompanied by two destroyers. Their hull numbers indicated they were part of the People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theatre Command.

The Fujian will be China’s first – but the world’s second after America’s USS Gerald R. Ford – aircraft carrier equipped with electromagnetic catapults.

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The Chinese warship has conducted eight sea trials since May 2024, testing its propulsion, electronic systems, deck operations and carrier-based aircraft take-offs and landings.

The Fujian is expected to carry J-35A stealth fighter jets, J-15T heavy carrier fighters, J-15DT electronic warfare aircraft and KJ-600 early warning aircraft.

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