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By Ryan Chan
China News Reporter
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Satellite imagery of a Chinese naval base near the contested South China Sea suggests the country's most-advanced aircraft carrier, CNS Fujian, may soon be put into service.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request from Newsweek for comment.
Why It Matters
China has claimed sovereignty over most of the South China Sea based on "historic rights," overlapping with claims by other countries, particularly the Philippines, a U.S. treaty ally that plays a key role in Washington's strategy to counter China's assertive behaviors. Such disputes have led to standoffs and clashes between rival forces.
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What To Know
China operates more than 370 ships and submarines, including three aircraft carriers—CNS Liaoning, CNS Shandong and the Fujian—making it the world's largest navy by hull count and enabling the East Asian power to expand its military presence across and beyond the Pacific, posing a challenge to United States naval dominance.
Unlike the Liaoning and the Shandong, which are in service and equipped with ski-jump flight decks, the Fujian features electromagnetic catapults that allow it to launch heavier fixed-wing aircraft, including China's next-generation naval combat jet, the J-35. The only other aircraft carrier with a similar design is USS Gerald R. Ford.
BlackSky, a Virginia-based space intelligence company that provides real-time images, on Friday shared an October 25 satellite image of Yulin Naval Base on the Chinese southern island province of Hainan, showing the Shandong and the Fujian pierside.
Located north of the South China Sea, where China's sovereignty claims overlap with those of other countries, Hainan Island serves as a vital staging point for the Chinese military and Coast Guard to project power and maintain a presence in the region.
The satellite image shows aircraft and crowds of sailors on the Fujian's flight deck and pier, BlackSky said. @type36512, a military observer on the social-media platform X, said a podium for important ceremonies appeared to be under preparation on the pier.
The analyst also noted that eight aircraft and helicopters were visible on the Fujian's flight deck, including two J-15T/DT and two J-35 fighter jets, as well as two KJ-600 early warning aircraft, capable of operating only from the catapult-equipped Fujian.
Compared with the Shandong, the Fujian lacked its hull number painted on the flight deck bow. However, two workboats were visible, moored alongside the aircraft carrier's bow, suggesting both sides of the bow may have been painted with the hull number.
Alex Luck, a naval analyst in Australia, wrote on X that aircraft on the Fujian's flight deck were parked for event-style activities, while sailors rehearsed formation drills, pointing to the Fujian's commissioning in the near future, "plausibly within days."
The Pentagon previously assessed that the Fujian, which began construction in 2017 and was launched in 2022, was expected to be operational in the first half of 2025.
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What People Are Saying
The Pentagon's commented in its Chinese military power report 2024: "Fujian is larger than the ski-jump carriers and fitted with an electromagnetic catapult launch system. This design enables it to support additional fighter aircraft, fixed-wing early-warning aircraft, and more rapid flight operations, thus extending the reach and effectiveness of the [People's Republic of China]'s carrier-based strike aircraft."
The Center for Strategic and International Studies' ChinaPower project commented: "Aircraft carriers are one of the most visible symbols of a country's military power. China is among a small handful of countries that possess multiple aircraft carriers."
Alex Luck, a naval analyst in Australia, wrote in an article for Naval News in September: "Out of these three [aircraft carriers] the Fujian is also among the largest and in at least some aspects most modern such designs in the world. This benchmark, including now flight operations from Fujian, once again reflects the outcome of methodical, persistent development and modernization, which the Chinese Navy continues to sustain at considerable pace."
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether China has begun construction of its fourth aircraft carrier, the first to be powered by nuclear reactors, while the Fujian is close to commissioning.
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