China’s aircraft carrier No 4 on track with ‘no technical bottleneck’, admiral reveals in first official confirmation
- Whether Type 004 will feature nuclear propulsion will ‘soon be announced’, PLA Navy admiral and political overseer reveals
- China has the capability to deliver ‘all-round response’ to the US carrier fleet in the western Pacific, Yuan Huazhi says on NPC sidelines
The admiral added that he had not heard of any “technical bottleneck” regarding the aircraft carrier, suggesting its progress was on track.
Yuan’s comments, coming on the sidelines as this year’s National People’s Congress (NPC) opened on Tuesday, represent the first official confirmation of Beijing’s efforts to build a fourth aircraft carrier, commonly known as the Type 004.
Illustrations of the warship, however, have long been circulating on the internet.
The artwork was purported to have come from the Jiangnan shipyard in Shanghai, where the carrier is believed to be under construction.
It has been widely discussed whether China’s latest warship could take another step up to become nuclear-powered, allowing it to generate sufficient power for catapult-launch take-offs and offer a longer range with a higher speed.
The Fujian, which has yet to conduct sea trials, was launched in June 2022.
PLA sources told the Post the same year that China’s naval nuclear reactor technology at the time was not sufficient to support nuclear carriers.
Aircraft carriers are also believed to be crucial to operations along the Taiwan Strait, where so-called freedom of navigation operations by the US and its allies have triggered protests from Beijing.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the US, do not recognise the self-governed island as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take it by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.
China is also developing new generation stealth fighters to increase its overall warfare capabilities – in line with its goal to develop a “world class” military power by 2049.
Tensions have risen as the US deploys more carriers in the western Pacific, which analysts say is a response to military manoeuvres from China and North Korea.
Asked to compare the Chinese aircraft carrier development with that of the US, he said the Chinese advancements in the field were not aimed at competition with the US.
“We are building aircraft carriers to protect our national sovereignty and to protect our territorial integrity,” he said.