China Deploys All Three Of Its Aircraft Carriers At Sea For The First Time

China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has deployed three aircraft carriers to sea for the first time.

The carriers involved in this operation are the Liaoning and Shandong, both of which are long-term assets of the Chinese fleet, and also the Fujian, China’s largest and first domestically designed carrier.

The Fujian is still undergoing sea trials, but its presence shows that China’s naval aviation program has made major progress.

Recent satellite images revealed that all three carriers were at sea on September 18, with the Liaoning in the Philippine Sea, the Shandong off Hainan Island, and the Fujian near Shanghai.

Each carrier group was accompanied by a fleet of destroyers, frigates, and support ships, displaying the PLAN’s capability to coordinate operations in several zones.

While the Liaoning and Shandong have previously been deployed together, the latest deployment of the Fujian shows that the PLAN is preparing for a routine multi-carrier operation.

Three such deployments have occurred this summer, showing China’s carrier presence in the Western Pacific becoming more normalized.

China’s carrier operations go beyond regular displays of strength. The Liaoning’s recent moves near Taiwan and through Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture send a strong message to regional powers. Operating carriers east of Taiwan increase the PLA’s ability to attack or blockade the island in a conflict.

Wellington Koo, Taiwan’s Minister of Defense, expressed concern about the increasing difficulty in distinguishing between Chinese military exercises and possible offensive measures, raising the island’s state of alert.

China recently deployed three icebreakers to the Arctic and conducted a joint naval exercise, Ocean 2024, with Russia that involved over 400 warships and 120 aircraft across several seas.

These exercises show a unified front aimed at challenging Western naval dominance. During Ocean 2024, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) reported tracking Russian aircraft entering the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone.

China is also increasing its Arctic-capable fleet. This summer saw the first deployment of three icebreakers to the Arctic. In contrast, the United States is expected to stay without a surface presence in the Arctic for the rest of the year.

Following a fire aboard the Coast Guard icebreaker Healy, which was forced to return to Seattle, the only other icebreaker in the United States, Polar Star, is currently in dry dock.

The Xue Long 2, China’s largest icebreaking research vessel, began a months-long expedition in early July, travelling through crucial waters north of Alaska.

The Zhong Shan Da Xue Ji Di, an icebreaker operated by Sun Yat-sen University, is 200 nautical miles from Utqiagvik in the Beaufort Sea.

Reference: The War Zone, Global Times

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