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A satellite image shows China’s two operational aircraft carriers docked together.
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Liaoning and Shandong were located at the pier of Sanya Naval Base on Hainan Island in the South China Sea.
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Both aircraft carriers arrived at the base after completing exercises in the region.
A rare satellite image captures the two Chinese planes fully operational aircraft carriers sat together at the pier in the South China Sea earlier this week.
The aircraft carriers arrived at the naval base after several weeks of exercises in the region.
Business Insider obtained the satellite image of Black Skya real-time, space-based intelligence company. It shows the Liaoning and Shandong aircraft carriers of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army docked at the same pier at Sanya Naval Base on Hainan Island, just east of Vietnam.
The photo was taken on Tuesday. Open source intelligence accounts on social media also noted that both airlines are rarely seen linked together.
The Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier, was built from the stripped hull of an unfinished Soviet-era Kuznetsov-class aircraft carrier that China bought in the late 1990s. It entered service in 2012, but was not considered combat-ready until four years later. Considering its origins, the Chinese Liaoning resembles Russia’s only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov.
The Shandong, China’s second aircraft carrier, is the first domestically produced aircraft carrier. However, the ship is still based on the design for the Liaoning, with similar features such as the ski jump style ramp for launching aircraft, but also some differences such as the ability to carry a larger air wing, specifically more of China’s carrier-based J-15 fighters. The ship was put into service in the PLAN in 2019.
These ships are the predecessors of China’s newest aircraft carrier, the Fujianwhich is not yet in active service and has undergone sea trials. Unlike the others, the new ship has a advanced catapult launch system similar to the kind used on the US Navy’s new Ford-class aircraft carriers.
Before docking together in Sanya, the Liaoning and Shandong operated on different waterways. In mid-September, the Liaoning was spotted sailing from the East China Sea to the Philippine Sea. It then conducted exercises in the western Pacific using fighter jets and helicopters.
The Shandong, on the other hand, docked in Hainan late last month after participating in exercises in the South China Sea. While there has been some speculation, it is unclear whether the airlines will operate dual-carrier flights.
The Chinese naval exercises come amid exercises with Russia and clashes with its neighbors. Beijing has been harassing and attacking Philippine ships in disputed waters, particularly around the Scarborough Shoal. The area, which China falsely claims, has seen increasing conflict in recent months Chinese ships shoot water at Philippine ships and ram them.
Just this week, the Philippines accused Chinese ships of firing water cannons at government vessels delivering supplies to fishermen in the area.
These battles involve the white-hulled Coast Guard rather than the Chinese navy gray hulls, such as destroyers and aircraft carriers, that would be needed in a major maritime conflict.
Read the original article Business insider
