Chinese Armed Forces: News & Discussion

[Rakesh]

VIDEO: https://x.com/Defence_Index/status/1966435386957217951 ---> China’s most advanced aircraft carrier, Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait and into the South China Sea during sea trials — a step toward formal commissioning. Source: Reuters

[Rakesh]

https://x.com/RealAirPower1/status/1967539368484294963 ---> Chinese Growler? A fantastic view of a Shenyang J-15DH. The two-seat electronic warfare variant of the J-15 entered PLANAF service in October 2024. Outfitted with EW pods and sub-systems, it is STOBAR-capable. Notice the absence of an IRST?

[Rakesh]

VIDEO: https://x.com/Echinanews/status/1970069039507705966 ---> The Chinese Navy announced Monday that carrier-based aircraft J-15T, J-35 and KongJing-600 have successfully completed their inaugural electromagnetic catapult-assisted takeoff and arrested landing trainings on aircraft carrier, the Fujian.

https://x.com/arunp2810/status/1970076655957012490 ---> PLA Navy’s carrier Fujian has proved its electro-magnetic catapult by launching the J-15 & J-35 jets as well as the KJ-600 twin turboprop. Compared to AEW helicopters, the rotodome equipped KJ-600 will bestow a huge early warning advantage on Fujian. Impressive!

[Rakesh]

https://x.com/globaltimesnews/status/19 ... 4277686532 ---> The J-15T, J-35, and KJ-600 carrier-based aircraft have completed their first catapult takeoff and arrested landing training on the aircraft carrier Fujian, according to a press release by the PLA Navy on Monday. This indicates that the aircraft carrier Fujian has acquired the capability of electromagnetic catapult and recovery. It is another breakthrough in the development of China's aircraft carriers and a milestone in promoting the naval transformation and construction.

[Rakesh]

https://x.com/CollinSLKoh/status/1970071582845616565 ---> With the successful takeoff and landing of its J-35T from carrier Fujian, the PLAN now boasts the equivalent of carrierborne fighter jets in service viz USN, namely J-15 (viz Super Hornet), J-15D (viz Growler) and J-35 (viz F-35C JSF).

[Rakesh]

China’s Aircraft Carrier Capability Just Made A Stunning Leap Forward
https://www.twz.com/air/chinas-aircraft ... ap-forward
22 Sept 2025

China has simultaneously debuted its J-35 stealth fighter, J-15T fighter and KJ-600 radar plane operating from its first catapult-equipped carrier.

[Khalsa]

Congratulations to the Chinese MIC for persistance.
That is how you do it.

The key things to note here are

FLAT TOP
J-15T - Heavy Fighter
J-35 - Naval Stealth Fighter
KJ-600 - AWACS
Catapault - EMALS

[bala]

China’s Aircraft Carrier Capability Just Made A Stunning Leap Forward

This is quite a stunning achievement for the Cheens, they have leapfrogged many in this domain. India has had carrier experience for a long time. The graduation to true independence started with Vikrant. However we are still dependent on Mig-29K, engines from GE to pwr the boat, etc. Assisted takeoff (EMALs etc) is yet to be implemented, LCA Naval is languishing and more. Need a singular focus to achieve things, which requires more money.

[Manish_P]

The IN pivot to Subs is to be seen in this context.

And we need to speed up development of large armed UUVs to be the stealthy predators at the choke points which will be the traversing routes for some of these big boys.

[Rakesh]

Chinese Navy Releases Footage Of Flight Operations From New Aircraft Carrier “Fujian”
https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/20 ... perations/
23 Sept 2025

[BhairavP]

The IN pivot to Subs is to be seen in this context.

And we need to speed up development of large armed UUVs to be the stealthy predators at the choke points which will be the traversing routes for some of these big boys.

Not a very effective pivot,no? Other than the SSBN programme, which is directly under the PMO, we're still flailing around for SSKs, while SK exports the same HDW type we've been manufacturing since the '80s.

[Manish_P]

..
Not a very effective pivot,no? Other than the SSBN programme, which is directly under the PMO, we're still flailing around for SSKs, while SK exports the same HDW type we've been manufacturing since the '80s.

Sir ji, at least this is a pivot and not yet another tangent.

Few photos and videos of the new Chinese carrier and some of our retired admirals have once again started the we need many carriers campaign.

(Mind that I am not blaming them entirely. A warrior needs his weapons, and his shield)

[BhairavP]

^Agree. But SSNs are the most effective counter to the Chinese CBGs - and the news about the 200MW reactors is good. In parallel, we need to develop that base in the A&N Islands quickly as well. 40 SU-30MKIs with Brahmos and a carrier there - will allow us to dominate the Straits of Malacca. Indonesians and Malaysians will be happy as well.

[Manish_P]

^Agree. But SSNs are the most effective counter to the Chinese CBGs - and the news about the 200MW reactors is good. In parallel, we need to develop that base in the A&N Islands quickly as well. 40 SU-30MKIs with Brahmos and a carrier there - will allow us to dominate the Straits of Malacca. Indonesians and Malaysians will be happy as well.

With due respect sir, when i was a noob (well i still am actually) on BRF a couple of decades ago, i had posted that we were playing chess while the chinese were playing Go - an entirely different and equally, if not more, complex game.

I was chastised quickly by some senior maulaners stating that we would simply block the straits of malacca

I had asked at the time, what if the chinese simply had already got their carriers & subs (which would have outnumbered ours) placed at their different bases in Pakistan, Africa, Bangladesh, Maldives etc etc after passing smoothly, under our watchful eyes, via the Malacca during peace times.

I was told then that our qualitative edge and the American help (to contain china) would see us through.

I was skeptical about it then and i am skeptical about it now

Considering that China is still the developed world's factory, the world (especially the western world) will pressurize/penalise/sanction us, and not China, to give concessions to China & end the war so that their supplies of toilet paper are not disrupted.

The Maginot line fiasco of the mid 20th century should not be repeated by the Malacca straits one in the 21st century

[Cain Marko]

^Agree. But SSNs are the most effective counter to the Chinese CBGs - and the news about the 200MW reactors is good. In parallel, we need to develop that base in the A&N Islands quickly as well. 40 SU-30MKIs with Brahmos and a carrier there - will allow us to dominate the Straits of Malacca. Indonesians and Malaysians will be happy as well.

With due respect sir, when i was a noob (well i still am actually) on BRF a couple of decades ago, i had posted that we were playing chess while the chinese were playing Go - an entirely different and equally, if not more, complex game.

I was chastised quickly by some senior maulaners stating that we would simply block the straits of malacca

I had asked at the time, what if the chinese simply had already got their carriers & subs (which would have outnumbered ours) placed at their different bases in Pakistan, Africa, Bangladesh, Maldives etc etc after passing smoothly, under our watchful eyes, via the Malacca during peace times.

I was told then that our qualitative edge and the American help (to contain china) would see us through.

I was skeptical about it then and i am skeptical about it now

Considering that China is still the developed world's factory, the world (especially the western world) will pressurize/penalise/sanction us, and not China, to give concessions to China & end the war so that their supplies of toilet paper are not disrupted.

The Maginot line fiasco of the mid 20th century should not be repeated by the Malacca straits one in the 21st century

SSNs are a good idea long term, but the stealthier SSKs with aip is what is really needed for the straits and this program unfortunately seems to be just lingering caught in a weird time loop.

Can't believe India didn't order an additional 6 stretched scorpene class. Maybe they were truly compromised with that Aussie leak...

[Rakesh]

SSNs are a good idea long term, but the stealthier SSKs with aip is what is really needed for the straits and this program unfortunately seems to be just lingering caught in a weird time loop.

Can't believe India didn't order an additional 6 stretched scorpene class. Maybe they were truly compromised with that Aussie leak...

viewtopic.php?p=2660911#p2660911

[Rakesh]

https://x.com/clashreport/status/1971277933210959909 ---> CLAIM: Clear photo of China’s 6th generation fighter J-50 has been leaked.

https://x.com/OSPSF/status/1971291479889834223 ---> New picture is out from Chinese social media of a Shenyang J-50/J-XDS 6th-Generation Stealth Fighter taxiing. The photographer has reportedly been arrested by Chinese authorities.

[sajaym]

https://militarywatchmagazine.com/arti ... ment-china

Nice read. This article is a kind of Deja vu for me. I wonder whether people of my vintage will remember that back in the 1980s similar write-ups were done about the Mig-25 and people in Western Airforces used to shit bricks thinking about the Mig-25...until a russian Mig-25 pilot defected and then everyone realised that the Mig-25 was.... literally....a brick!

[sajaym]

https://x.com/clashreport/status/1971277933210959909 ---> CLAIM: Clear photo of China’s 6th generation fighter J-50 has been leaked.
..........

These pics look exactly like the tailess delta design of the LCA which used to be there on the internet many years ago. The guy who thought of that design should be given an award. If some action had been taken on that design we would have been easily on par with China.

[Manish_P]

... everyone realised that the Mig-25 was.... literally....a brick!

A brick which nevertheless could move very very fast... and a brick is still pretty useful against houses whose windows are big and made of glass.

[Manish_P]

...
These pics look exactly like the tailess delta design of the LCA which used to be there on the internet many years ago.
...

True.

The law of Physics and the rules of Aerodynamics and low RCS are pretty rigid. The shaping will be very similar.

[SNaik]

Fujian has been officially commissioned into Navy on 5th November.
https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/20 ... in-hainan/
07 Nov 2025

[Rakesh]

Fujian has been officially commissioned into Navy on 5th November.
https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/20 ... in-hainan/
07 Nov 2025

VIDEO: https://x.com/China_Fact/status/1986833 ... 32514?s=20 ---> “What did you study?”

“I majored in electromagnetic catapult technology!”

As the Fujian was commissioned, President Xi Jinping boarded the carrier for an inspection. The young crew members beamed with confidence and pride.

[Rakesh]

VIDEO: https://x.com/zhao_dashuai/status/19867 ... 32458?s=20 ---> Official confirmation: President Xi personally made the decision for the aircraft carrier Fujian to have the electromagnetic catapult, instead of the steam catapult that was originally designed to have. At the end, the video shows the sled of the catapult coming to a full stop, looks incredibly surreal.

[Rakesh]

https://x.com/commiepommie/status/19870 ... 83109?s=20 ---> “Freedom of navigation”? Mate, meet Fujian. On Nov 5th in Sanya, China officially commissioned its 003 “Fujian” aircraft carrier, the country’s first electromagnetic catapult carrier and the start of a three-carrier era. Xi Jinping attended the ceremony, toured the deck, met the pilots and personally pressed the EM catapult launch button. That’s not theatre, that’s symbolism with steel. Here’s why it matters:

• Fujian is only the second EMALS carrier on Earth, but the first to launch fifth-gen J-35 stealth fighters and KJ-600 early-warning aircraft.
China skipped the steam age entirely and landed in the future.

• Its air wing is built for 2025, not 2005: J-35s, J-15Ts, KJ-600s, Z-20Fs, all catapult-ready. EMALS gives smoother launches, faster sortie rates and room for uncrewed aircraft.

• This isn’t just a ship. It’s the core of a fully-formed carrier strike group, 055 destroyers, 054 escorts, replenishment ships, subs, all made in China.
When Beijing builds, it builds systems, not headlines.

• Fujian ends America’s post-WWII monopoly on carrier tech. The map hasn’t changed, but the balance of power just did.

• While the U.S. still struggles with its Ford Class carrier and talks about returning to steam, China’s already scaling EMALS tech across new platforms like the Type 076 amphibious ships. One side debates. The other delivers.

• China’s navy operates close to home, the South China Sea, Taiwan Strait, East China Sea. The U.S. sails halfway around the world, waving laws it never ratified (UNCLOS) and calling it “freedom.” Let’s be honest, that’s provocation, not protection.

• And while the U.S. shipyards sink in delays and politics, China’s roll out new hulls like dumplings. 003 is in. 004 (nuclear-powered) is already taking shape.

Bottom line: The U.S. sails for posture. China sails for parity and permanence. Fujian doesn’t just answer “freedom of navigation.” It rewrites it. Because when you can build it, launch it, crew it and sustain it, you don’t follow the tempo. You set it.

China builds stability.
America performs it.

[bala]

Fujian is bad news for India and the world. The Indian Navy has usually been on the forward move with Aircraft carrier Vikrant sometime back. However the EMALS carrier of China requires the IN to do something on the carrier front. This is a rude awakening for MOD and Defence mantriji Rajnath Singh. India is definitely shaping up as the #3 in the world and in the next few years this is a reality. However the babus at the top are asleep at the wheel. China and US will band together to prevent India's rise.

The Indian Navy design studio should be hard at work to get a decent answer to the hegemony of the two big dogs. A 85+K aircraft is required to police at least the Indian ocean area and shoo away these two from dominating local seas. I hoping a nuclear powered carrier is also in the works soon. China has quietly leapfrogged everyone except the US. This should raise alarm flags in IN and motivate them to do better. TEDBF is now very important too.

[RCase]

Fujian - a critical perspective. Take it for its worth. Interesting points made in the video This particular channel brings out things that are not necessarily flattering about the Chinese maal. I don't know from where/how they get their clips...! i don't recall seeing any aircrafts taking off from the Fujian when Xi was on the boat to inaugurate it.

Maybe someone with carrier expertise can comment on the design flaws pointed out in the video about the ability to either land or take-off at a time and the triangle area on the deck.

China’s Fujian Aircraft Carrier Fake Exposed! Couldn’t Steal Tech, Delivered a Half-Finished Product

On November 5, the Fujian aircraft carrier was officially delivered in Sanya, Hainan province. Xi Jinping attended the ceremony in person and conducted the inspection. This should have been a peak moment for China’s navy, a high point in its naval achievements. Yet, the entire event was surprisingly quiet and unusually simple.

[SNaik]

You can call them design flaws or limitations of a smaller ship. 9 degree off-set angle on Ford and 6 degree on Fujian. Longer EMCATs on Fujian, causing port forward cat to edge into landing zone. Waist catapults won't be in use on both designs.

But the point is rather moot, as simultaneous take offs and landings are not a standard operating procedure.

[Rakesh]

China tests new supersonic jet engine, delivers unprecedented thrust, efficiency, speed
https://interestingengineering.com/mili ... gine-speed
08 Nov 2025

China unveils a shape-shifting Mach 4 engine that could redefine next-generation flight.

[Manish_P]

^ Waiting now for videos on how it is a flawed design... how it is only 50% reliable as western engines.... etc etc.

If it proves to be the genuine stuff then we will have videos on why modularity is not good in engines like multi calibre is not good for rifles...

[Rakesh]

From SCMP, so be warned Any electrical engineers reading the below, please provide your inputs.

Meet Ma Weiming, the Chinese naval engineering genius behind the Fujian aircraft carrier catapult
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/militar ... r-catapult
13 Nov 2025

https://x.com/Ignis_Rex/status/1988888975466008905?s=20 ---> China’s EMALS Breakthrough Shows How Ma Weiming Outflanked the US Navy. For decades, the United States treated electromagnetic aircraft launch systems (EMALS) as a technological crown jewel—an innovation so power-hungry it could only be married to nuclear-powered supercarriers. The USS Gerald R. Ford was supposed to symbolize American naval supremacy. Instead, it became a cautionary tale of over-engineering, plagued by reliability issues and ballooning costs. Enter Ma Weiming, the Chinese naval engineer who refused to play by America’s rules. His innovations in Medium Voltage Direct Current (MVDC) and Integrated Power Systems (IPS) did more than make EMALS reliable—they shattered the nuclear monopoly. By reimagining how ships generate, store, and discharge electricity, Ma turned EMALS from a fragile prototype into a scalable weapon of maritime disruption.

The Power Revolution

The genius of Ma’s MVDC system is brutally simple: smooth out the chaos of shipboard electricity. Instead of relying on alternating current and massive nuclear reactors, China’s EMALS uses direct current integrated with modular energy storage. Diesel generators feed the system gradually, capacitors and flywheels hoard the energy, and when the catapult fires, the release is precise, controlled, and devastatingly efficient. This isn’t just engineering—it’s liberation. EMALS no longer belongs exclusively to nuclear carriers. It can run on conventionally powered warships, even amphibious assault ships like the Type 076 Sichuan. America never dared to imagine EMALS on anything smaller than a supercarrier. China just did it.

Reliability as a Weapon

The U.S. Navy’s EMALS has been dogged by embarrassing launch failures. China’s MVDC-based system, by contrast, thrives on reliability. Fewer moving parts, reduced conversion losses, and modular redundancy mean fewer breakdowns and more launches. Reliability isn’t just a technical metric—it’s a strategic weapon. A carrier that can consistently launch aircraft with heavier payloads and longer ranges changes the calculus of naval warfare. A drone carrier that can hurl UAVs into contested skies without nuclear propulsion rewrites the playbook entirely.

The Type 076: A Provocation in Steel

The Sichuan is the world’s first amphibious assault ship equipped with EMALS. That fact alone should send shivers down the Pentagon’s spine. By scaling EMALS to smaller hulls, China has created a new class of warship: the drone carrier. This is not a vanity project. It’s a deliberate provocation. The message is clear: while America struggles to make EMALS work on its most expensive carrier, China is deploying it on ships designed to swarm contested waters with drones and light aircraft.

The Strategic Shockwave

Ma Weiming’s innovations are not incremental—they are disruptive.

- America’s nuclear dependence is now a liability. China proved EMALS can thrive without it.
- Distributed power projection is now reality. Smaller ships with EMALS multiply China’s reach.
- The generational gap is real. China didn’t just catch up—it leapfrogged.

The U.S. Navy once believed EMALS was its ace card. Now it looks like a joker.

Conclusion

Ma Weiming’s MVDC and IPS systems did more than solve an engineering puzzle. They rewrote the rules of naval power. By making EMALS reliable, scalable, and deployable on conventionally powered ships, China has democratized a technology America thought it owned. The Fujian super carrier may grab headlines, but the real shockwave is the Sichuan. A drone carrier with EMALS is not just a ship—it’s a statement. And that statement is blunt: China is no longer playing catch-up. It’s playing offense.

https://x.com/Ignis_Rex/status/1988888979387895937?s=20 ---> Ma Weiming is a Chinese naval engineering genius, often referred to as the "father of the Chinese electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS)." He played a pivotal role in the development and implementation of the advanced EMALS for China's third aircraft carrier, the Fujian. Initially, the Fujian was not planned to have this cutting-edge catapult system, with designers leaning towards more traditional steam catapults. However, Ma, a professor at the PLA Naval University of Engineering, advocated for the EMALS, confident in his two decades of work on DC-based ship power technologies. He pushed for pursuing advanced technology to surpass the Americans, famously stating, "If we are doing it, we go for the cutting-edge. If we want to lead, we overtake the Americans." His innovations have been credited with putting the Fujian among the most advanced aircraft carriers and potentially putting China "one generation ahead" in critical naval warfare areas.

[Tanaji]

It is only a matter of time before China sells drone ships to Pakistan and we will have like 2-3 of them on our flank. Each bristling with drones with significant load capacity.

Meanwhile we will be debating the next version of MRCA and trying to induct a 65K+ nuclear powered carrier..

We cannot compete with Chinese, that ship sailed long back. The bare minimum we should try for is to deter and at least aspire to destroy what the Pakis get via Chinese at fire sale prices

[S_Madhukar]

That’s why we need to litter our backyard seas with midget subs and skies above with Sats and drones . And with near perfect ISR we should be able to target any hostile hull from either coast line and island chain