China Prepares Carrier-Based Special Mission Aircraft for Fujian with Land-Based Training

China's Navy Prepares for Carrier-Based Special Mission Aircraft

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy has begun testing training strategies for carrier-based special mission aircraft in preparation for their deployment on the Fujian, China's first aircraft carrier equipped with electromagnetic catapults. This information was revealed in a report by official media on Wednesday.

A special mission aircraft teaching team from an undisclosed base affiliated with the PLA Naval Aviation University has been utilizing Y-7 land-based transport aircraft to simulate carrier-based training procedures. This preparation is in anticipation of the future induction of the carrier-based special mission aircraft.

"We are now fully adept at maintaining precise flight direction, optimal posture, and pinpoint landing accuracy," said Lin Chunliang of the PLA Naval Aviation University in a video posted by CCTV military channel on its Weibo account.

With the aircraft carrier Fujian expected to be commissioned soon, the team is committed to training elite pilots for carrier-based fixed-wing special mission aircraft. The team has visited the designing institute to learn about the upcoming carrier-based special mission aircraft and to verify the training methods by applying technical assessments and spectral data analysis.

Special mission aircraft, often developed based on transport aircraft, typically include early warning aircraft, maritime patrol aircraft specialized in anti-submarine warfare, electronic warfare aircraft, and tanker aircraft.

China has not yet officially confirmed which type of special mission aircraft will be deployed on the aircraft carrier Fujian. However, the insignia of the aircraft carrier Fujian, featured in a CCTV report in early January this year, illustrated what seems to be an early warning aircraft flying alongside a J-35 fighter jet over the aircraft carrier.

There have been media reports indicating the development of a carrier-based early warning aircraft allegedly called the KJ-600. In addition, there could also be other types of carrier-based special mission aircraft such as carrier-based anti-submarine patrol aircraft, or simply a type of carrier-based transport aircraft.

The PLA Naval Aviation University's simulation training using the Y-7 transport aircraft will enable pilots to transition more smoothly to the upcoming carrier-based aircraft, as the two aircraft types share key design characteristics, including high engine thrust and lightweight airframe construction. They also likely have similar size and weight.