China building its own aircraft carrier: party official

Focus News Taiwan ^ | 2014/01/18 | Hsiao Pao-hsiang and Jay Chen

[sukhoi-30mki]

Taipei, Jan. 18 (CNA) The first aircraft carrier built entirely by China is being constructed in the northeastern city of Dalian, a Communist Party official said Saturday, confirming for the first time that the Chinese are building the vessel from scratch.

Wang Min, party secretary in Liaoning Province, made the disclosure during a meeting of the provincial people's congress, according to the online edition of the Chinese-language Takungpao daily in Hong Kong.

Wang told the delegates that the aircraft carrier is being built in a shipyard in Dalian and is expected to take six years to complete, Takungpao reported.

Wang also reportedly said that the Chinese Navy will operate at least four aircraft carriers in the future.

The Chinese Navy commissioned its first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, in September 2012 but the vessel was rebuilt in Dalian based on the hull of a former Soviet vessel first launched in late 1988.

There have been several reports about China building its own aircraft carriers but so far, the Chinese defense ministry has neither confirmed nor denied the reports.

[tanknetter]

I guess that is the game then. Shawdow each carrier.

Pretty much. I'm thinking that's one of the reasons why the USN consolidated the Seawolf class on the West Coast rather than split them or (if the goal was simplified logistics) base them on the East Coast. Basically the entire class (including the heavily modified SSN-23) is pointed straight at China.

The Seawolfs were designed around one core mission: go up under the ice, penetrate the heavily defended Soviet SSBN bastions and eliminate the other side's boomers with extreme prejudice. They have a LOT of advanced technology that wasn't carried over into the Virginias, and trade some of the multi-mission stuff from the VA's and later LA class (VLS for surface-attack Tomahawks for instance) for an expanded torpedo-shooting capability (8 torpedo tubes vs 4, with the tubes being large diameter ones that permit near-silent "swim-out" capability, and a heck of a lot more torpedos).

In a future general war with the ChiComs the Seawolfs are the ones that will go after their high-value naval assets (carriers and SSBNs) ... and I wouldn't bet against them.

[Cringing Negativism Network]

Unlike so many on this board, I see a massive threat to America from China.

China currently makes everything America buys.

They will make carriers, and planes, just as well as they make everything in every shopping mall.

America really needs to quit messing around, and bring back American manufacturing.

Now.

[Lazamataz]

Ping

[Jeff Head]

Laz, as you know, I follow this stuff.

I got to read the actual quote from the Party Leader in the province around Dalian = who made this statement. His actual Chinese statement was that the Chinese would be starting their second "home built" carrier (which translates in Chinese to indigenous carrier) this year.

If true, this would mean that they already started another one somewhere else, probably Shanghai. There have been rumors for several months now that two indigenous STOBAR carriers would be built simultaneously in China, one in Dalian and the other in Shanghai. This quote seems to indicate that the second one is about to be started.

Their first carrier, that the article refers to is the Liaoning, CV-16, which was the former Soviet Varyag. It was laid up in Ukraine, about 70% complete (hull was 100% complete) when the USSR fell. They then sold it to China and over a ten year period, they refit it. But it is not, "home built," they refurbished it. The words the guy used in Chinese indicate that their second indigenous carrier would be staring in Dalian soon. To me, this means their first one has already been started, as I said, probably in Shanghai.

Looks like they will build two at once, and increase their numbers to three in the next 4-6 years.

I expect they will build two more after that, which will probably be full blown CATOBAR carriers and end up with a total of five.

Here's the history of the Liaoning, from unfinished hulk in the Ukraine, to the completed carrier it is today.

The Transformation of an incomplete Soviet carrier into the Chinese Lioaning, CV-16

[Zhang Fei]

I expect they will build two more after that, which will probably be full blown CATOBAR carriers and end up with a total of five.

I'm surprised they're bothering with a STOBAR carrier, given the current size of the Chinese military budget (~$200b), which has presumably given the procurement people all the money they need for blue sky projects and then some. Wouldn't surprise me if their procurement budget was the same size as ours (~$100b).

[Lazamataz]

Laz, as you know, I follow this stuff.

I know you do! Thus, the ping.

Thanks for your input. Educational!

[gura]

If China was serious they’d punch through North Korea into SK and capture their excellent shipyards.

[TalonDJ]

Call me when this thing leaves the yard,
You realize it left the yard over a year ago? And that they are practicing landing on the carrier at sea now, right?

[Kenny Bunk]

You realize it left the yard over a year ago? And that they are practicing landing on the carrier at sea now, right?

I didn't know that! So how's that going? What do the Celestial Laundrymen and Moneylenders use for carrier aircraft? Have they got their own Harrier? Can they catch the wire?

Film at 11, please. I also still want to make my offer that they take John McCain as a Lend-Lease instructor. No please, I insist. Take the guy. On me. Take the guy.

[sukhoi-30mki]

J-15 landing on the Chinese carrier