CNS Liaoning (16)

History

While aircraft carriers were once shunned by the Chinese as "Western capitalist enterprises", the country has recently seen a reversal of that mindset and has begun to see carriers as a symbolic force for any nation considering maritime expansion. In response to its growing military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, the Chinese government has launched a program to procure decommissioned aircraft carriers from navies including the Soviet Union/Russia (Minsk and Kyiv) and Australia (HMAS Melbourne). These ships then provided Chinese engineers with the knowledge they needed to bring their own viable carrier end products to market.

The move officially paid off with the acquisition of the former Soviet Navy aircraft carrier Varyag.

By 1992, amid ongoing defense cuts, the Soviet Union decided to stop building their new aircraft carrier "Varyag" (Admiral Kuznetsov class) and hand over its rights to Ukrainian authorities, The authority is now no longer under Ukrainian control. Soviet Empire.

The boat is about 70% complete and then sits for years with no real owner or purpose - essentially a hull ready to be scrapped or sold to the highest bidder. The ship was eventually sold to the Chong Lot Travel Agency for $20 million (stripped of all electronics, propulsion and operational facilities) - long seen as being built exclusively for the Chinese military The state-owned holding company established by the ship to procure non-political funds.

The agency's rationale for the acquisition was that the ship's hull would be rebuilt for recreational value only, turning it into a floating casino and resort.

All in all, the Liaoning will initially lack much of the combat power and capabilities of America's most powerful nuclear aircraft carrier, although - given the military balance in the Asia-Pacific region - the Chinese navy will become more modern and advanced in force, making the region increasingly Get closer to an arms race andmaybeeventually to total war. Honestly, the Chinese naval warfare doctrine considering complex battle groups at sea is still in its infancy, and the United States wrote books on the deployment and use of aircraft carriers in WWII, resulting in the death of the legendary battleship.

In addition, Chinese military technologywhether modified or locally developedhas been under suspicion for some time, reminiscent of Shilangs possibly limited inherent capabilities.

PLA sources say the Liaoning will be used more as a training school to provide training for the future development of all Chinese aircraft carriers. A July 2011 statement by the Chinese sought to reassure nervous observers that the ship was being refitted for "science" and "training purposes" rather than war. Of course, in true Chinese propaganda fashion, this proved wrong. In any case, the Chinese have not turned a blind eye to military build-ups in places like Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore. India and Japan are expected to deploy no less than three of their own aircraft carriers over the next decade, allowing China to match or exceed these numbers in its own way.

A strong naval presence (especially an aircraft carrier force) will also inevitably challenge the US Navy's presence in the Pacific.

The Liaoning (16) was officially commissioned at a government ceremony on September 25, 2012, and is currently (2012) in service in the waters surrounding China. His presence is, of course, a show of strength in a region that has been escalating tensions for decades.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Wing