Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, China's naval construction has undergone a development process from scratch and from small to large. Aircraft carriers, as a symbol of naval strength, have always attracted much attention. As of 2021, China already has two aircraft carriers in service, namely "Liaoning" and "Shandong".
1. The development process of China's aircraft carriers.
Liaoning ship. The Liaoning, formerly known as the "Varyag" of the Soviet Navy, is a sub-ship of the Kuznetsov-class aircraft carriers built during the Soviet era. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Liaoning was owned by Ukraine. In 1998, China purchased the Liaoning and began refitting. On September 25, 2012, the Liaoning was officially delivered to the Chinese Navy, becoming the first aircraft carrier of the Chinese Navy.
Shandong ship. The Shandong is the first aircraft carrier designed and built by China completely independently. Construction began in November 2013, was launched on April 26, 2017, and officially delivered to the Navy on December 17, 2019. The commissioning of the Shandong ship marks the maturity of China's aircraft carrier construction technology and provides strong support for China's navy to move towards deep blue.
2. Challenges and future development of China's aircraft carriers.
The challenge of aircraft carrier technology.
Although China already has two aircraft carriers, there is still a big gap between China and the world's advanced level in terms of aircraft carrier technology. For example, the take-off mode of carrier-based aircraft of China's aircraft carriers is still mainly based on glide jump take-off, while the US aircraft carriers have already achieved electromagnetic catapult take-off. In the future, China needs to continue to innovate in aircraft carrier technology and improve the combat capability of aircraft carriers.
Construction of aircraft carrier battle groups.
An aircraft carrier battle group is an important manifestation of a country's naval strength. At present, the construction of China's aircraft carrier battle group is still in its initial stage, and compared with the aircraft carrier battle group of the United States and other countries, the combat capability needs to be improved. In the future, China needs to strengthen the construction of aircraft carrier battle groups and improve the comprehensive combat capability of aircraft carrier battle groups.
Development of an aircraft carrier strategy.
The aircraft carrier strategy is an important direction for a country's naval construction. China is still in the exploratory stage of aircraft carrier strategy, and it is necessary to formulate a suitable aircraft carrier strategy according to national interests and needs. In the future, China needs to strengthen strategic research on aircraft carriers and provide strong support for aircraft carrier construction.
III. Conclusion. In short, China's aircraft carrier construction has achieved remarkable results, but it still faces many challenges. In the coming period, China needs to continue to strengthen research on aircraft carrier technology, aircraft carrier battle group construction, and aircraft carrier strategy, so as to provide strong support for the strength of China's navy. At the same time, we should also realize that aircraft carriers are only a part of the navy's combat strength, and China also needs to strengthen the construction of other naval equipment to improve the overall strength of our navy.