China is years away from realizing ambitions to build an aircraft carrier force and is instead rehabbing an old Russian carrier, British naval experts say.The London publication Jane's Navy International Wednesday quoted U.S. officials as saying China is unlikely to build any aircraft carriers before 2015, but added that Beijing is continuing a time-consuming project to retrofit the former Russian carrier Varyag.
"It is likely that the ship will emerge from Dalian in the next few years to perform, initially, a training role," said Commodore Stephen Saunders, editor of Jane's Fighting Ships.
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More non-news about China's absence of carrier construction. Never in history has there been so much speculation by so many about so little.
ReplyDeleteIt seems the US Navy is keeping the issue in the news to justify its 11 carrier groups.
Pete
If this is what the US Navy intends to achieve they failed.
ReplyDeleteDefense Secretary Robert M. Gates stated: We will shift the Navy Aircraft Carrier program to a five-year build cycle placing it on a more fiscally sustainable path. This will result in 10 carriers after 2040.