The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLN) today officially owns the world's largest conventional warship. The aircraft carrier Fujian was commissioned by President Xi Jinping on Wednesday at a ceremony held on Hainan Island.
It is China's first aircraft carrier with a catapult-assisted barrier landing (CATOBAR) system and is also the world's second ship with an electromagnetic aircraft launch (EMAL) system.
The Fujian is similar to the United States' Forrestal-class aircraft carriers from the 1950s. It is 300 meters long, 76 meters wide and weighs about 72,000 tons. This makes it a supercarrier because it can carry more aircraft than the Lioning and Shandong, which use ramp systems to launch aircraft.
It can carry the J-35 and J-15T fighter jets and the KJ-600 warning and control aircraft. With three EMAL launchers, a wide range of aircraft can be launched into the air safely compared to steam launcher systems. With controllable thrust, the Fujian is expected to be able to carry drones to double its strength on the battlefield.
China's carrier development does not stop with the Fujian as they are reportedly also building a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier with a reactor being tested in Sichuan since last year.
