Fujian Aircraft Carrier Accelerates Cross-Sea Area Training in 2026, PLA Electromagnetic Aircraft Carrier Enters Hard Adaptation Phase for Ship and Aircraft

The most interesting aspect of the Fujian aircraft carrier's recent southward passage through the Taiwan Strait into the South China Sea is not just that the carrier itself has moved again, but that it has begun to connect the East China Sea, Taiwan Strait, and South China Sea into a continuous testing route. The South China Morning Post quoted PLA Navy spokesperson Leng Guowei as saying that this cross-sea area scientific research experiment and training is a routine arrangement in the aircraft carrier construction process and is not aimed at specific targets; the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force has also discovered the Fujian carrier for the first time in waters about 200 kilometers northwest of the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea, stating that it was accompanied by two destroyers. This detail is more technically significant than the usual slogans.

From Sea Trials to Cross-Sea Area Training: The Key is Environmental Samples

A retrospective article from the China Military Network on June 17 provided a clear timeline: the Fujian carrier was launched on June 17, 2022, completed its first 8-day sea trial in May 2024, and conducted the first catapult takeoff and landing training for the J-15T, J-35, and KJ-600 in September 2025, officially entering service on November 5, 2025. The official confirmation also stated that the Fujian carrier features a straight-through long flight deck, equipped with electromagnetic catapults and arrestor wires, with a full-load displacement of over 80,000 tons. At this pace, the focus for 2026 is no longer proving that the ship can operate, but rather demonstrating that this ship-aircraft system can operate stably under different sea conditions.

In simple terms, the combat capability of an aircraft carrier is not generated in a beautiful shot. The winter sea conditions in the East China Sea, the narrow waterways of the Taiwan Strait, and the high temperature and humidity and complex electromagnetic environment of the South China Sea all exert different pressures on electromagnetic catapults, arrestor wires, deck scheduling, and aviation support. For conventional powered electromagnetic catapult aircraft carriers like the Fujian, the real challenge lies in refining power management, flight deck rhythm, and aircraft sortie efficiency into a daily process. A cross-sea area training session equates to collecting more boundary conditions for the system.

Four Types of Carrier-Based Aircraft Together Are Not a Display, But a System Pressure Test

The PLA Navy previously disclosed that during the first live training at sea after the Fujian carrier was commissioned, the J-15T heavy carrier-based fighter, J-15DT electronic warfare aircraft, J-35 stealth carrier-based fighter, and KJ-600 early warning aircraft all completed multiple electromagnetic catapult takeoffs and arrested landings. The outside world may easily focus on whether the J-35 is stealthy or the size of the KJ-600, but I am more concerned about whether the support chain of the Fujian can withstand the simultaneous entry of these aircraft into the deck process.

• The J-15T provides heavy load and mature airframe experience, serving as the main force during the transition period.
• The J-35 changes the methods of penetration and air superiority, but has higher maintenance, coating, and spare parts requirements.
• The J-15DT undertakes electronic suppression, determining whether the formation can break through in a complex electromagnetic environment.
• The KJ-600 fills the gap in fixed-wing carrier-based early warning and is also the most direct beneficiary of electromagnetic catapults.

The significance of this combination lies not in the completeness of the paper models, but in the simultaneous appearance of aircraft with different weights, maintenance rhythms, and mission attributes on the deck. The advantage of electromagnetic catapults is the adjustable thrust curve, which theoretically makes it more suitable for mixed launches from heavy fighters to early warning aircraft. However, turning theoretical advantages into combat capability requires extensive repetitive training. The U.S. Ford-class aircraft carriers took years to gradually resolve the reliability issues of electromagnetic catapults and advanced arresting gear, and China cannot skip this engineering adjustment phase.

Two Escort Ships Indicate Formation Training is Still in the Foundation Stage

The South China Morning Post mentioned that Japan observed the Fujian carrier accompanied by two destroyers, with hull numbers indicating they belong to the Eastern Theater Command. This scale does not constitute a complete aircraft carrier battle group, but rather resembles cross-sea area testing and basic formation training. The China Military Network disclosed last November that the first live training formation at sea included the Fujian carrier, the Yan'an ship, and the Tongliao ship, among others, with the Yan'an being a Type 055 10,000-ton destroyer and the Tongliao being a Type 054A frigate. The 055 is responsible for area air defense and formation command nodes, while the 054A provides anti-submarine and surveillance capabilities, forming a practical training framework.

The Ministry of Defense previously stated that the Fujian carrier is conducting test training tasks as planned, steadily advancing towards the formation of a grouped and systematic combat capability.

I do not fully agree with interpreting every crossing of the Taiwan Strait as a purely political signal. The Fujian carrier certainly has political implications, but from an engineering perspective, the Taiwan Strait itself is a waterway that must be familiarized. For an aircraft carrier that will operate in the Western Pacific in the future, understanding nearshore hydrology, civilian ship density, air situation handling, and theater coordination is more practical than making a few statements in public reports. The real signal is that it has begun to frequently shift from single-ship testing to combined verification of formations, ship and aircraft, and cross-regional environments.

The Shortcomings Still Lie in Sustained Sortie Rates and Support Systems

The publicly available data on the Fujian carrier is already impressive: over 80,000 tons, conventional power, electromagnetic catapults, three types of main carrier-based aircraft, and fixed-wing early warning aircraft. However, a Li Minghui-style judgment needs to temper some enthusiasm. The core indicator of aircraft carrier combat capability is not how many times it can launch, but how many sorties it can conduct daily under high-intensity conditions, how many days it can sustain this, how well spare parts and aviation fuel supplies can keep up, and whether crew and aviators can maintain rhythm during nighttime and adverse weather. Public information provides almost no answers to these questions.

From a supply chain perspective, the Fujian carrier will also pull an entire set of industries: carrier-based aircraft engine lifespan, reliability of carrier-based radar and electronic warfare equipment, aviation support vehicles, electromagnetic catapult power modules, arrestor wire materials, carrier-based aircraft folding mechanisms, and salt fog treatment. An advanced single ship does not equate to a mature system. Whether the experience of the Fujian can be replicated in subsequent aircraft carriers is the real question that the Chinese Navy must answer.

Therefore, this southward journey to the South China Sea should not be seen merely as another sailing news. It resembles a publicly visible extension of engineering acceptance: the Fujian has already crossed the threshold of whether it can launch and land, and is entering the stage of whether it can launch continuously, launch mixed types, and launch stably across sea areas. The real unanswered question is whether, after the J-35, J-15DT, and KJ-600 all enter routine training, the Fujian's daily sortie rate will approach half that of mature U.S. carriers, or will it remain at a demonstration pace for a long time?