China's first aircraft carrier enters service

[asto]

China's first aircraft carrier has entered into service, the defence ministry says.

The 300m (990ft) Liaoning - named after the province where it was refitted - is a refurbished Soviet ship purchased from Ukraine.

For now the carrier has no operational aircraft and will be used for training.

But China says the vessel, which has undergone extensive sea trials, will increase its capacity to defend state interests.

China's Premier Wen Jiabao said the ship would have "a mighty and deep significance". It would be "a cause for patriotic passion", he said at a ceremony attended by top Chinese leaders at Dalian Port.

The delivery of the aircraft carrier comes at a time when Japan and other countries in the region have expressed concern at China's growing naval strength.

China and Japan are embroiled in a row over disputed islands in the East China Sea.

Several South-east Asian nations are also at odds with China over overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea.

It also comes weeks ahead of a party congress expected to see the transition of power to a new generation of Chinese leaders.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-19710040

More photos: http://jz.chinamil.com.cn/scrollnews/20 ... 038489.htm

Another article (Dutch): http://nos.nl/artikel/422487-china-heef ... ereed.html

[Jaap]

China's first aircraft carrier has entered into service, the defence ministry says.

For now the carrier has no operational aircraft and will be used for training.

Given the skid marks training follows the testing already done.
At least six J15s (carnard equipped J11s/Su-27s) are in the test phase for some time now (with only rumours about how many have been build since) and also most operational Navy helicopter types have operated from the carrier already.

See also http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/sh ... 20/page328 for the commissioning pictures

Jaap

[Jaap]

Where else to find Super Frelon (aka Z8) operations starting at an aircraft carrier (during pre-commissioning testing)?

[thebaseleg]

Note that one of the J-15s (554) pictured doing touch-and-goes on the Liaoning has what appears to be artwork of a shark on the tail

[Stratofreighter]

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articl ... er-378631/

"At this point, China's carrier is entirely symbolic," adds Bitzinger.

"The ski jump limits how much airpower you can pack in.

Because they don't use a catapult, they have to use a lot of fuel to take off, which turns planes into flying gas tanks.

This ship will not project power like a US carrier.

It mainly exists to protect itself - a self-licking ice cream cone."

[Jaap]

a self-licking ice cream cone."

And it is melting like hell