Recently the official website of America’s Popular Science magazine released a report on the latest news about China’s first domestically built aircraft carrier titled “China’s new carrier gets a ski ramp.” A photo was also released, saying that “the ship’s ski jump soon to be welded to the carrier’s front”.
In a recent interview with CCTV’s Focus Today program, military expert Yin Zhuo said the second China-made aircraft carrier might adopt the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) pending the final decision.
After China confirmed at the end of 2015 for the first time that it was building the first China-made aircraft carrier in Dalian, both domestic and international media have paid growing attention to this carrier.
The Popular Science claimed that “since the beginning of the year, many modules have been assembled, including the below-deck hangar bay, openings for aircraft elevators, and is expected to be launched in 2017.”
According to Yin Zhuo, the first China-made aircraft carrier had existing design drawings, so it only went through cabin adjustment and tonnage expansion without many newly developed items, featuring a high level of technical maturity.
China produced deck steel and ship-bottom steel a long time ago, so building material for aircraft carrier is not an issue, which is why it is built much faster than aircraft carrier Liaoning. Communication equipment on that carrier such as radar is very advanced too, Yin added.
American media claimed that China is testing the EMALS. Once the test succeeds, China’s aircraft carrier will be a very powerful combat force in the future.
Does that mean the second China-made aircraft carrier may adopt the EMALS? Yin Zhuo said that was possible. “In my opinion, the most advanced the technology, the better. There is no difficulty that we cannot solve about electromagnetic launch. We are as good at that technology as the United States, but whether this technology will be adopted will depend on the final decision.”
Yin Zhuo added that if the EMALS is adopted, that means the aircraft carrier will use overall power system that features integrated electric propulsion, the application of electromagnetic gun and electromagnetic rail gun will just be a matter of time, and this technology may even be used to launch satellite.
If breakthroughs can be made in those technologies, Yin continued, they will lead to broad prospects in the application of self-defense and high energy laser weapon on aircraft carrier.
