According to a tweet published by Louis Cheung HK on June 17, 2022, the People’s Liberation Army Navy launches the Type 003 aircraft carrier Fujian at the Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai.
Fujian is China’s first aircraft carrier to use a CATOBAR system and electromagnetic catapults, as well as the first supercarrier built outside the United States. The vessel, named Fujian, was launched with a hull number of 18. China expects the carrier to enter service in 2023.
Type 003 is expected to use integrated electric propulsion (IEP) and electromagnetic catapults, whereas preceding Chinese carriers were conventionally powered and launched aircraft with ski jumps.
Measurements based on satellite and aerial photography suggested a hull/waterline length of 300 meters – nearly the flight deck length of China’s existing carriers – a maximum beam of 40 meters (131 ft 3 in), and a displacement of more than 85,000 tonnes (84,000 long tons).