China launches third aircraft carrier

Shanghai [China], June 17 : China launched its third aircraft carrier, named the "Fujian," on Friday. The carrier, named after Fujian Province, was completely designed and built by China.
The new carrier was put into the water at a launch ceremony in Shanghai today.
Xu Qiliang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), presented a naming certificate to the navy unit receiving the carrier, the Xinhua news agency reported.
Approved by the CMC, the Fujian was given the hull number 18, according to Chinese state media.
It is China's first domestically-made carrier that uses catapults. With a full-load displacement of more than 80,000 tonnes, the carrier is equipped with electromagnetic catapults and arresting devices.
The new carrier will conduct mooring tests and sea trials as scheduled. The state media reported that the carrier, named Fujian, is the country's first one equipped with electromagnetic catapults and arresting devices.
Global Times reported that the Fujian is China's first fully domestically developed and constructed aircraft carrier with catapults. It has a flat, straight flight deck equipped with electromagnetic catapults and arresting devices, and has a full displacement, the report added.
A Washington-based think tank said its electromagnetic catapult-assisted launch system is a major upgrade from the less advanced ski jump-style system used on the Liaoning and the Shandong, its two predecessors.
According to media reports, the new system, similar to the ones used by US aircraft carriers, will allow China to launch a wider variety of aircraft from the Fujian faster and with more ammunition.