A J-15 fighter jet takes off from the deck of the Liaoning in May 2022 near Okinawa, Japan. The Liaoning has conducted more than 40 naval exercises since its commissioning, averaging nearly three per year. (Ministry of Defense of Japan)
China’s Liaoning Aircraft Carrier Just Got Back from Another Deployment
The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has run more than 40 training missions aboard the ski jump-type carrier, which will mark its 15th year in service in 2027.
China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy announced on Monday that its Type 001 CNS Liaoning (Hull 16) completed far-sea combat training and returned to port in Qingdao. The PLAN’s first aircraft carrier and carrier strike group (CSG) operated in the South China Sea and Western Pacific, spending more than a month deployed.
“A Chinese PLA Navy’s task force led by aircraft carrier Liaoning (Hull 16) completed its 40-odd open-sea combat training in the South China Sea and the Western Pacific Ocean, and returned to home port in east China’s Qingdao city on Monday,” the China Military Bugle, the official media agency of the Chinese military, announced on X (formerly Twitter), while sharing “sizzle reel” video of activities from the deployment.
According to a report from Chinese state media outlet CGTN, the training included combat readiness, including air defense, anti-ship drills, support missions, and live-fire exercises.
The Chinese CSG included the flagship CNS Liaoning, the cruiser CNS Wuxi (104), destroyer CNS Kaifeng (124), frigate CNS Luohe (545), and fast combat support ship CNS Hulunhu (901). The Liaoning CSG began its deployment on May 18, and operated in the Philippine Sea before carrying out drills in the South China Sea.
China Is Running Non-Stop Training Drills on Its Flattops
Joint training drills were also conducted with the Type 75 amphibious assault ship Anhui (Hull Number 33), which entered service in 2022. Anhui can reportedly deploy with 30 armed helicopters, with upwards of six being able to simultaneously take off or land. However, unlike the US Navy’s Wasp-class and America-class amphibious assault ships, the Chinese warship can’t operate with fixed-wing aircraft, as the PLAN lacks the short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) capabilities of the US Marine Corps.
The recent drills marked a rare occasion for any PLAN amphibious assault ship to operate alongside one of China’s three conventionally-powered aircraft. It is a sign that interoperability between the two classes of flattop is part of the PLAN’s naval doctrine.
“Aircraft carrier forces can provide fire cover and support for amphibious assault ships during landing operations, while both sides can also provide services and take-off and landing platforms for each other’s shipborne helicopters,” Fu Qianshao, a military analyst and former PLA Air Force officer, told The South China Morning Post. “Flexible coordination between the two types of warships can strengthen maritime assault capabilities.”
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) acknowledged that it monitored the CSG while it operated in the region, but Beijing has now accused Japan of “dangerous” close-in reconnaissance, claiming JMSDF vessels engaged in provocative harassment.
The Japanese Ministry of Defense confirmed that it was tracking the Liaoning and at least two escorts as they sailed through the Miyako Strait and into the East China Sea over the past weekend.
About China’s Type 001 Liaoning Carrier
- Year Commissioned: 2012
- Length: 306.4 meters overall (270 meters at the waterline)
- Beam (Width): 74.4 meters overall (35 meters at the waterline)
- Displacement: 54,500 tons (standard) up to ~60,900 tons (full load)
- Propulsion: Steam turbines driven by 8 oil-fired boilers; conventionally powered
- Top Speed: ~20 knots (23 mph, 37 km/h)
- Loadout: Typically carries up to 40–50 aircraft (mix of fixed-wing and rotary)
- Crew: ~2,590 personnel (1,960 ship crew, 630 air group)
The Type 001 CNS Liaoning entered service with the PLAN in 2012, becoming the first carrier commissioned into its Surface Force. It was originally laid down in December 1985 for the Soviet Navy as an Admiral Kuzetsov-class multirole aircraft carrier. Named the Varyag, she was never completed, and following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the warship was inherited by the newly independent Ukraine.
Lacking the funding to complete the massive naval project and with no strategic need for an aircraft carrier, Kyiv sold the uncompleted warship to a Chinese shell company in 1998, ostensibly for use as a floating hotel and casino.
The uncompleted vessel was subsequently towed to the Dalian naval shipyard. It languished for several years, until Beijing moved forward with plans to finish the vessel, using it to jumpstart the PLAN’s naval aviation efforts.
The carrier’s airwing consists of 24 J-15 fighters, six Z-18F anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters, four Z-18J airborne early warning helicopters and two Z-9C rescue helicopters. The mix of aircraft is in line with Soviet aircraft carrier doctrine to provide support for nuclear submarines, large surface combatants and land-based strike bombers.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: Editor@nationalinterest.org.
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