Fujian: Technical specifications of the new aircraft carrier
China's third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, has been officially commissioned. As the first completely independently developed carrier with electromagnetic catapults, it marks a significant technological step for the Chinese Navy. The Fujian is approximately 316 meters long, displaces over 80,000 tons, and is China's first carrier with a modern catapult system capable of launching heavy fighter jets and early warning aircraft. This closes the technological gap with the US Navy, even though the Fujian is still years away from full operational readiness and is conventionally powered. The central question is what the technical specifications of the Fujian reveal about China's capability for global military power projection, especially compared to the US Navy's carriers.
Source: Own illustration
Introduction
An aircraft carrier is a floating airfield. It enables a nation to deploy fighter jets and reconnaissance aircraft far from its own coast without relying on foreign bases. China's first carrier, the Liaoning, , is based on a Soviet hull and uses an upwardly curved ramp ("Ski-Jump"), from which jets with limited take-off weight lift off. This concept is referred to as STOBAR ("Short Take-Off But Arrested Recovery").
The Fujian, in contrast, is the first Chinese carrier with a CATOBAR-System (“Catapult-Assisted Take-Off But Arrested Recovery”). Aircraft are launched by catapult but land with arresting wires on the deck, similar to STOBAR. Instead of steam-powered catapults, as used by the US Navy on its older Nimitz carriers, the Fujian uses electromagnetic catapults ( EMALS), ), similar to the system on the US Gerald R. Ford-class carriers. The major advantage: such catapults can launch aircraft like the J-35-Stealth-Jet or the early warning aircraft KJ-600 even at full take-off weight – meaning with plenty of fuel and heavy weapons – something that is barely possible with ski-jump systems.
Background
The Fujian was built by the Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai, launched on June 17, 2022, and bears the Rumpfnummer 18. . On May 1, 2024, the carrier began its first Seeerprobungen. . Further test voyages followed; in total, the Fujian completed nine major sea trial phases by mid-2025, including the first trip into the South China Sea. Simultaneously, the Chinese Navy initially tested the electromagnetic catapults with truck dummies (“Dead Load” tests) in the harbor, a step that was first revealed by Bilder und Analysen at the end of 2023.
Current Status
In 2025, China finally showed video footage in which J-35 stealth fighter jets, modernized J-15T jets, and the KJ-600 early warning aircraft were launched by EMALS and landed back on deck from the Fujian – a technological leap that weltweit Beachtung took place. The Fujian was officially commissioned on November 5, 2025, in Sanya on Hainan Island, in the presence of state and party leader Xi Jinping. China now has three active aircraft carriers – Liaoning (commissioned since 2012), Shandong (since 2019), and Fujian (since 2025) – giving it the zweitgrößte Zahl number of carriers worldwide after the USA. At the same time, analysts emphasize that despite the commissioning, the Fujian is not yet fully operational, as complex carrier operations, the integration of air squadrons, and the interaction with escort ships will only be developed over Jahre eingespielt .
Source: YouTube
Analysis and Significance
The Fujian allows for significantly more and more heavily armed aircraft than the Liaoning and Shandong, whose ski-jump decks limit the take-off mass and cannot carry large early warning aircraft. The combination of EMALS, J-35 stealth fighters, and KJ-600 early warning aircraft shifts the Chinese naval air force from a rather defensive, coastal role to a capability to establish its own Luftüberlegenheit aufzubauen far out to sea – including early target detection and complex joint operations. In the regional context, the Fujian targets the area between the so-called “First Island Chain” (Japan–Taiwan–Philippines) and the “Second Island Chain” with Guam and other US bases: there, China wants to increasingly challenge the presence of the USA and, in an emergency, restrict their Bewegungsfreiheit einschränken. access. However, analysts also point out that a carrier would be more of a complement than the central instrument in a possible conflict over Taiwan – simply because the island is geographically close to the Chinese mainland and large Flugbasen existieren exist there.
On a symbolic level, China presents the Fujian as a visible sign of a “modern, world-class” armed force by the middle of the century, as Xi Jinping has repeatedly Ziel formuliert . At the same time, the Fujian is a communication tool both internally and externally: images of J-35 launches or the massive flight deck serve internal political legitimation as well as deterrence or Beeindruckung anderer Staaten of other states.
Source: YouTube
Facts and Open Questions
It is confirmed that the Fujian is China's third aircraft carrier and the first fully designed and built carrier in China with electromagnetic catapults; this is confirmed by both Chinese state media and unabhängige Analysen. . The rough technical data is also well-documented: a length of about 316 meters, a flight deck width of about 76 meters, and a full displacement of over 80.000 Tonnen. . That the Fujian launched J-35 stealth jets, J-15T fighter jets, and KJ-600 early warning aircraft with EMALS is proven by official image and video material as well as analyses from Fachportalen dokumentiert .
Source: flugrevue.de
The Fujian during its first sea trials, an important milestone in its development.
The exact capacity of the air wing is still unclear: estimates range at about 40 bis 60 Flugzeugen , but China itself has not published detailed official figures. It also remains unclear how quickly the Fujian will transition from a symbolic “flagship role” to a carrier with fully mature, routine operational patterns – experience from the US shows that learning complex carrier operations Jahre dauern kann can take time.
Source: theweek.in
The aerial view of the Fujian illustrates the dimensions and the strategic arrangement of the flight decks.
The claim that the Fujian makes the Chinese Navy an equal competitor to the US Navy “overnight” is misleading. Although the Fujian is a huge leap, the US still operates 11 nuklear betriebene Träger with decades of operational experience and a global network of bases. It would also be false to assume that the Fujian can sail practically indefinitely like a US carrier: it is conventionally powered, its radius of action is estimated at 8.000 bis 10.000 Seemeilen , while US carriers benefit from nuclear propulsion and do not require refueling. Headlines suggesting that EMALS is “simply better” than steam power and therefore automatically decisive in war are also oversimplified: the advantage lies more in flexibility, maintenance, and aircraft variety – not in the fact that a carrier with EMALS is inherently „gewinnt“ .
Source: militaeraktuell.at
A fighter jet on the deck symbolizes the future capability and technological integration of the Fujian.
Western defense experts like Greg Poling from CSIS emphasize that the Fujian is an important step towards a “Blue-Water Navy” capable of operating far beyond its own coasts, but at the same time highlights significant gaps in operational range, logistics, and experience compared to the US Navy bestehen bleiben. . Analysts like Brian Hart from the China Power Project point out that the real gain lies in enhanced reconnaissance and combat management: with the KJ-600 and J-35, China can significantly extend its own "vantage point" and range into the Pazifik verschieben. . At the same time, experts, for example in Business Insider analyses, point out that the US Navy has decades of real operational experience and that state-produced propaganda videos of the Fujian naturally show primarily successful tests, but not Probleme. . Chinese voices, such as military expert Song Zhongping, argue, in contrast, that it is China's legitimate right to build a navy commensurate with the country's global economic interests, and that carriers like the Fujian are primarily intended to serve Abschreckung und Stabilität . In regional media, for instance in Australia, the Fujian is often seen as proof that China is increasingly expanding its power projection into areas where the US and allies have previously militärisch dominierten .
Conclusion and Outlook
The Fujian is an indicator of how seriously China takes its role as a global power – militarily, complementing its economic and technologischen Expansion. standing. Tensions over Taiwan, in the South China Sea, or around Guam will be increasingly shaped by carrier strike groups in the future, not just by missiles and island bases. For Europe, this means paying closer attention to the Indopazifik zu schauen. in security policy debates. For one's own assessment, it is worthwhile to pay attention to a few things in reports about the Fujian: Is a clear distinction made between technology (EMALS, stealth jets), operational readiness (trained crew, logistics), and strategy (Taiwan, “Second Island Chain”)? Are sources like AP, Reuters, CSIS, or specialized portals like Naval News mentioned – or only anonyme „Experten“ ?
Despite much data, key points remain open. It is unclear how reliably the Fujian's EMALS systems will function over the years and with a high number of operations – even the US Navy had to contend with Kinderkrankheiten ihrer EMALS issues on the Gerald R. Ford class. It is also an open question how quickly China can bring the operational routine of a real carrier strike group – including anti-submarine warfare, air defense, and supply – up to the level of the US Navy, which has been operating carriers in realen Einsätzen for decades. In the long term, the question arises of when a truly nuclear-powered Chinese carrier will follow: there are already indications of a land-based prototype reactor system for large warships, but the timetable and performance remain Spekulation. . Finally, it remains politically open whether carriers like the Fujian will primarily be used for deterrence and demonstration of power overseas – or whether they will be deployed in a real conflict, such as over Taiwan, aktiv zum Einsatz .
The Fujian is a technical and strategic intermediate stage: significantly more modern and capable than the Liaoning and Shandong, but not yet on the level of the US-Superträger. . The technical data – EMALS, stealth jets, early warning aircraft, and large displacement – show that China is serious about projecting naval power far beyond its own coast to be able to projizieren zu können. . At the same time, the still-lacking operational routine reminds us that hardware alone does not replace strategy: the key will be how well China combines training, logistics, and political goals with ships like the Fujian – and how smartly we all vet the news about it, instead of just trusting spektakulären Bildern zu vertrauen sensational headlines.