Power supply for aircraft carriers.
Aircraft carriers are one of the most complex and difficult in the world, and only a few countries can have them. You know, the power plant of an aircraft carrier is related to its range and propulsion speed, and without it, it is an immovable steel shell.
At present, the power plant of aircraft carriers can be broadly divided into two categories: nuclear power and ordinary power. Nuclear aircraft carriers are powered by nuclear energy**, which can produce long-lasting and powerful propulsion without frequent refueling, so they have a long range and performance in naval combat. Traditional aircraft carriers use diesel engines or steam turbines as energy, and they need to be refueled regularly, and their range and propulsion are relatively poor, so they are more suitable for maritime defense and auxiliary combat.
The level of construction of our aircraft carriers.
In the past 10 years or so, the speed of aircraft carrier construction in our country has been very fast, from the Liaoning ship "Varyag" to "Shandong" to "003", China's aircraft carrier construction speed and strength have been greatly improved, which has attracted the attention of the world.
At present, the first three aircraft carriers used in China are all of the conventional type, and their equipment is mainly ocean-going defense and military exercises, and they have accumulated a great deal of experience and information on aircraft carrier operations for our military. However, compared with our huge land area and maritime rights and interests, the three aircraft carriers are still somewhat insufficient, and we have repeatedly stated that in order to cope with future maritime security, we must expand another batch of aircraft carriers.
Our aircraft carrier nuclear technology.
For the Chinese Navy, nuclear aircraft carriers are the best ocean combat platform and the most powerful war fortress in the ocean, which can effectively protect our maritime rights and interests. In addition, in all respects, it is much better than the American aircraft carrier USS Ford, it is very strong and very powerful.
So, will our country be able to build a nuclear aircraft carrier? According to the recent information, our country has made important progress in nuclear energy reactors, developing a completely new metal reactor, which is more advanced than the pressurized water reactor used in the United States, and is smaller in size and safer, which can be used as a power source for aircraft carriers.
This means that our country already has the basic conditions for manufacturing nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, but this does not mean that we will manufacture them, and there are still many problems in this regard, including the degree of perfection of science and technology, the safety of energy, the disposal of energy, and the problem of energy consumption.
Our aircraft carrier construction program.
You must know that the cost of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has to be doubled a lot, taking the USS Ford as an example, that is, 15 billion US dollars, that is, 13 billion US dollars, and our 003 aircraft carrier is only about 50 billion, which is only half of the United States. This is not just a difference in data, but also reflects the military thinking of our country, in the process of rapid development, you can save a lot of expenses, put more funds into the development and production of the first class, so as to be fully prepared for the upcoming big war.
In building aircraft carriers, we will never blindly follow the United States and other major powers, but proceed from our own circumstances and our own strategic needs to make the most rational and beneficial policy decisions. Our country's naval leaders once said that our construction plan is not fixed, nor is it built in a day, but will constantly change and improve with the development of science and technology and the needs of combat.
Since the year before last, there have been rumors on the Internet that we will develop two new aircraft carriers, and some people say that we will use nuclear energy, although there is no confirmation, but it can be seen that we have made great progress in the development of nuclear submarines. And once China can build a nuclear submarine, both in science and technology and in combat effectiveness, it will be greatly improved.