China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, has achieved a significant milestone. The flattop has used its advanced electromagnetic catapults to launch three different kinds of aircraft, including China’s first carrier-capable stealth fighter jet, the J-35.
Apart from the J-35, the J-15T, China’s first fully indigenous carrier-capable fighter jet, and carrier-based KJ-600 early warning and control aircraft completed catapult launch and arrest landing tests on the carrier, the state broadcaster CCTV reported.
The 80,000-ton Fujian, which is gearing up for its official induction, is the first among the three Chinese aircraft carriers equipped with the electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS), a technology so far used only by US carriers.
Furthermore, the J-35 is the world’s second carrier-based stealth fighter after Lockheed Martin’s F-35 series. These tests mark the first time the stealth fighter jet, China’s second fifth-generation fighter after J-20 Mighty Dragon, has taken off from such a vessel, another significant achievement for China.
The CCTV report did not specify when the tests took place, but it did note that the J-35 completed the task before it was deployed in the Victory Day parade in Beijing on September 3.
Reportedly, the CCTV also showed footage of the J-35 taking off from Fujian.
The successful use of electromagnetic catapults to launch three different kinds of aircraft means that Fujian, China’s largest aircraft carrier, is one step closer to official induction.
“This means that the Fujian has attained electromagnetic catapult and recovery capabilities, representing another breakthrough in China’s aircraft carrier development and a milestone in the transformation of the navy,” the report said.
The aircraft carrier has already completed more than 100 days of sea trials.
The Fujian: China’s Third Aircraft Carrier
Fujian is China’s third aircraft carrier after Liaoning (inducted in 2012) and Shandong (inducted in 2019). While Shandong was also domestically constructed, Fujian is China’s first aircraft carrier to be entirely designed in China.
Furthermore, Fujian is the biggest conventionally powered warship in the world, with a displacement of over 80,000 tonnes.
Fujian is also China’s first aircraft carrier to feature an advanced electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS). It is equipped with three advanced electromagnetic catapults. It is only the second carrier in the world to have the equipment after the US’ Gerald Ford-class ships.
The carrier was launched on June 17, 2022, at Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai. Its sea trials began last year. Till now, it has completed at least nine sea trials.
Earlier this month, it transited the Taiwan Strait en route to the South China Sea for what is believed to be its final testing before induction. For this training, the carrier was accompanied by two destroyers.
According to state-run media reports and security analysts, the carrier could be inducted before the end of this year.
“Since its first sea trial in May 2024, the aircraft carrier Fujian has been conducting various maritime tests in an orderly manner according to schedule, smoothly advancing the commissioning of onboard systems and equipment as well as testing overall operational stability,” the CCTV report said.
“While it appears likely that the tests were done earlier this year, the choice to release the footage during Fujian’s ninth sea trials suggests that Fujian will likely be ready for commissioning in the near future,” Ben Lewis, a co-founder of PLATracker, told USNI News.
According to SCMP, the aircraft carrier is expected to be delivered to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy after the final tests, and is likely to be based in Sanya, Hainan province, one of China’s two carrier home ports.
Most of the Fujian sea trials have focused on testing the catapults, known as an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS), because of the complexity of the system.
The Fujian deploys a “catapult-assisted take-off but arrested recovery” (CATOBAR) launch system. This represents a leapfrogging past more conventional steam-powered catapults. Both of China’s previous carriers, the Liaoning and the Shandong, feature ski-jump decks.
The electromagnetic catapult will enable it to launch heavier and larger fixed-wing aircraft with greater fuel and weapons loads.
The electromagnetic catapult also enables faster take-offs, increases energy efficiency, and reduces stress on aircraft frames during take-offs.
The Fujian is much bigger than the previous Chinese aircraft carriers. As against the Liaoning’s 60,000 tonnes and the Shandong’s 66,000, the Fujian displaces roughly 80,000 tonnes.
It is much bigger than France’s aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (42,000 tonnes) and the United Kingdom’s HMS Queen Elizabeth (65,000 tonnes). It is smaller than the US Navy’s Ford-class carrier, which displaces 100,000 tonnes.
The only technological disadvantage it has in comparison to the US and French carriers is that it is not nuclear-powered.
According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the Fujian can carry about 60 aircraft, more than the Liaoning or the Shandong.
Commenting on the achievement, the state-run Xinhua news agency said: “In recent years, the (Chinese) navy’s carrier-based aviation has accelerated its development, completing a huge leap from single aircraft to system, from shore-based to ship-based, from ski-jump to catapult, and from being able to fly to being able to fight. The People’s Navy is steadily moving towards building a world-class navy.”
Projecting Chinese Power
Fujian is expected to play a key role in “the PLA’s anti-access and area denial strategy” if the United States intervenes in a conflict over Taiwan. Fujian derives its name from the eastern coastal province facing the island of Taiwan.
The progress on the Fujian suggests that the PLA-Navy will be meeting its short-term goal of becoming a fully modernized military by 2027, the centennial of its founding. China’s capability to take warships from the drawing board to sea trials is congruent with its ambition to construct and deploy six advanced aircraft carrier groups by 2035.
The freedom of navigation and overflight in international waters, the right of innocent passage of the territorial waters, and the right of transit passage of international straits guaranteed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provide an aircraft carrier with worldwide mobility. It can reach any conflict area since the majority of the earth is accessible by sea.
Lewis highlighted how Fujian will help Beijing project its power.
“Once operational, the PLAN will have the capacity to field fifth-generation stealth carrier aircraft, supported by fixed-wing carrier-based airborne early warning and command aircraft, across the first island chain and Western Pacific Ocean,” Lewis said.
China is also reportedly manufacturing a nuclear-powered carrier, a development that would eliminate the requirement for frequent refueling, enhancing the carrier’s operational endurance and autonomy.
- Sumit Ahlawat has over a decade of experience in news media. He has worked with Press Trust of India, Times Now, Zee News, Economic Times, and Microsoft News. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Media and Modern History from the University of Sheffield, UK.
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