President Xi Jinping attends Fujian aircraft carrier's commissioning ceremony

發佈日期: 2025-11-07 23:04

TVB News

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China's third aircraft carrier the Fujian, the first domestically designed and built carrier, has been commissioned at a naval base in Sanya City on Hainan Island. The Fujian is also the first to have catapult launch capability for fighter jets.
 
President Xi Jinping attended its commissioning ceremony on Wednesday.

The Fujian's commissioning ceremony was attended by 2,000 representatives from the navy and institutions involved in its construction work. 

The guard of honour escorted the "August 1" flag and presented it to President Xi Jinping, who then presented the flag to the captain and posed for a group photograph. 

Xi boarded the Fujian for an inspection tour to hear work reports. 

On the flight deck, the president communicated with pilots of the shipborne aircraft; this was followed by a display of the catapult launch with new-generation carrier-based warplanes. 

Xi told soldiers that they should keep improving their professional skills and combat capabilities. He said "it takes immense courage to conduct test flights" and hailed them as heroes.  

Bearing the hull number 18, the aircraft carrier is named after the southeastern province of Fujian and was launched in June 2022. 

It has a flat, straight flight deck and features a full displacement of over 80,000 tonnes. 

The Fujian is the first carrier in the world to feature an electromagnetic catapult system powered by conventional fuel for speeding up the take-offs of fighter jets. 

The carrier underwent sea trials in May 2024 and completed the first catapult take-off drill this September. 

Its entry of service marks a significant step forward for China's naval defence, along with the country's two Russian-designed carriers, the Liaoning and the Shandong.