Two of China’s aircraft carriers, including its biggest and best, have docked at the same naval base near the Yellow Sea, raising suggestions that another dual-carrier exercise is on the horizon. In one of the images purportedly taken on Thursday, the Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier, docked on the other side of the pier with…
When Elyn MacInnis first moved to Nanjing in the late 1980s, she was greeted by a wholly unexpected connection. Local elderly residents would look at the American newcomer, pause and tell her she resembled Minnie Vautrin: a middle-aged woman with round glasses and centre-parted hair often pinned up. MacInnis, who goes by the Chinese name…
Key scientists behind China’s latest stealth fighter and aircraft carrier have been promoted to one of the country’s top scientific academies in recognition of their contributions to advances in military technology. The honours also highlight the global lead Chinese military technology has taken in a number of areas. Wang Yongqing, the chief designer and expert…
It happens in an instant – your eyes register motion, your brain predicts what comes next and, in a split second, you think you understand what you are seeing. But what if that instinct is wrong? When a video was released on November 8 showing the carrier’s electromagnetic catapult firing in an empty launch, viewers…
China’s next-generation “drone-carrier” amphibious assault ship, the Sichuan, completed its first sea trials on Sunday afternoon, state broadcaster CCTV said. The three-day trial marks a major step forward for the People’s Liberation Army to take delivery of its first Type 076 amphibious assault carrier, seen as a key asset for China’s unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)…
Even for the anti-graft era of President Xi Jinping, the wave of investigations into alleged corruption in the Chinese military over the past three years has been exceptional. They are accused of having “violated party discipline and allegedly committed serious crimes related to their duties” – both euphemisms for corruption. “The amounts involved are particularly…
Aircraft carriers can serve as the “tip of the spear” for a military force, yet only a few nations have been able to muster the resources needed for them. China’s third carrier sets the bar for such vessels higher, underscoring a stunning pace of force modernisation meant to defend its interests rather than challenge or…
President Xi Jinping has given the southern province of Guangdong the task of strengthening technology, infrastructure and regulatory cooperation with Hong Kong and Macau to advance the Greater Bay Area scheme. “Developing the Greater Bay Area is both a major responsibility and a rare development opportunity for Guangdong,” state news agency Xinhua quoted Xi as…
Days after US President Donald Trump alleged that China has conducted underground nuclear tests unknown to the public, a CNN investigation has found that Beijing is rapidly expanding its missile production capabilities, replacing villages and farmland, into facilities over the period of five years. Over 60% of 136 facilities connected to missile production or the…
China’s latest and most capable aircraft carrier has officially entered service, a significant step forward for Beijing as it seeks to catch up with the United States on naval supremacy. Chinese leader Xi Jinping attended the commissioning ceremony for the Fujian at a military port in Sanya on Hainan island earlier this week, China’s state…