Military and National Defence >Equipment and Weapon Systems
China's Aircraft Carrier Liaoning
China's Aircraft Carrier Liaoning often refers to the Liaoning Aircraft Carrier, and can be called the "Liaoning Carrier" for short. It is the Chinese People's Liberation Army’s Navy’s first aircraft carrier. It is capable of carrying fixed wing aircrafts. Its predecessor was the Varyag, the Soviet Admiral Kuznetsov class aircraft carrier ship. After modification, it was known by Chinese as the "001 Type Aircraft Carrier". On September 25th, 2012, China's Aircraft Carrier Liaoning was officially renamed "China's Aircraft Carrier Liaoning", and delivered it to the Navy of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.
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How does China's first aircraft carrier stack up?

The entry of China’s first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, into service with the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) attracted considerable attention from both the Chinese press and military observers around the world. For some, the Liaoning was a symbol of China’s global power; for others, it represented a significant first step toward a more muscular and assertive Chinese navy. Originally built as a “heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser” for the Soviet Navy, the ship was laid down as the Riga and renamed the Varyag in 1990. A Chinese travel agency purchased the unfinished hull in 1998, and three years later the ship was towed from the Ukraine to China, where it underwent extensive modernization of its hull, radar, and electronics systems. After years of refits, the Liaoning was commissioned into the PLAN in September 2012 as a training ship unassigned to any of the Navy’s three major fleets. Two months after the ship was commissioned, the PLAN conducted its first carrier-based takeoff and landings. Although it might be several years before a carrier air regiment is fully integrated into the PLAN, it was reported in November 2016 that the Liaoning is now combat ready. Most recently in mid-December 2016, China staged the first live-fire drills involving the Liaoning.

J-15 fighter jets from China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier make South China Sea debut

China’s aircraft carrier-based J-15 fighter jets made a high-profile debut over the South China Sea on Monday amid tensions with the United States. The J-15 “Flying Shark”, stationed on board the Liaoning, China’s sole aircraft carrier, since 2013, practised operations as the vessel sailed in heavy seas, Xinhua reported. The Liaoning and its escorts have been carrying out a series of exercises since December, including a live ammunition drill in the Bohai Sea and a patrol in the Western Pacific that took it close to Japan’s Okinawa and Taiwan. The fleet made a brief stop in Hainan before entering the South China Sea.

China's First Aircraft Carrier Liaoning Holds Drills In South China Sea

A naval formation consisting of aircraft carrier Liaoning has conducted take-off and landing drills in the South China Sea yesterday, state-run Xinhua news agency quoted an official as saying. The formation, which is on a "cross-sea area" training exercise, involved J-15 fighter jets, as well as several ship-borne helicopters, the official said without mentioning specific numbers.

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1 J-15 fighter jets from China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier make South China Sea debut

2 Taiwan’s defence ministry said the Liaoning was travelling northwest along the centre line dividing the strait, along with its battle group.

3 China's first and only aircraft carrier, Liaoning, left its home port at Qingdao in northern China and took a politically charged route through Japan's Ryukyu island chain and the East China Sea.