More than a month after China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, was officially commissioned, satellite images circulating online show that the Fujian was photographed alongside the Liaoning—another carrier that had completed training in the Western Pacific and was berthed at Qingdao Naval Base—last Thursday (December 18). Military experts assess that the Fujian and Liaoning may conduct dual-carrier formation drills in the Yellow Sea, and it would not be surprising if they cross the First Island Chain into the Western Pacific.


Taiwan’s military recently released surveillance footage indicating that the Fujian sailed through the Taiwan Strait last Tuesday (December 16)—its first transit of the strait since commissioning—triggering widespread attention across Taiwan. The following day, Taiwan’s Defense Minister Gu Lixiong told the Legislative Yuan during interpellation that no carrier-based aircraft were observed on the Fujian’s flight deck, predicting it was returning to the Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai’s Changxing Island for defect improvements.

However, Lü Lishi, a former Taiwan Navy captain and military expert, posted on Facebook that the Fujian actually continued northward, attaching satellite photos showing the Fujian and Liaoning moored together at Qingdao Naval Base last Thursday. He sarcastically remarked, “The Fujian has arrived in Qingdao, not Changxing Island as claimed by the ‘Lawyer Minister’ (referring to Gu Lixiong).”

The Fujian is China’s first electromagnetic catapult-equipped aircraft carrier, commissioned on November 5 this year in Sanya, Hainan. According to a November 18 announcement by the Chinese Navy, the Fujian carrier group conducted its first real-combat maritime training, during which multiple types of carrier-based aircraft including the J-35, J-15T, J-15DT, and KJ-600 completed multiple catapult takeoffs and landings on the Fujian. This effectively tested the ship’s electromagnetic catapult, recovery, and deck operation capabilities, further verifying ship-aircraft compatibility—with the military publicly revealing the J-15DT’s takeoffs and landings on the Fujian for the first time.

Prior to the Fujian’s commissioning, China’s first and second carriers, the Liaoning and Shandong, conducted their first dual-carrier formation drills in the South China Sea in October last year. They again launched dual-carrier drills in the Western Pacific in June this year, crossing the Second Island Chain and drawing heightened attention from Japan and the United States.

Since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi raised the “Taiwan contingency theory” early last month, China-Japan relations have remained tense. China has carried out military missions or live-fire exercises in the Bohai Sea and Yellow Sea, with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) launching another week-long military mission in the northern Yellow Sea starting last Sunday (December 21). The Liaoning carrier group conducted open-sea training east of the Miyako Strait on December 6, sparking a standoff between Chinese and Japanese military aircraft at sea.

Regarding the Fujian’s northward voyage, a Chinese military blogger analyzed on Weibo that the Fujian is likely heading to receive additional carrier-based aircraft and may conduct joint drills with the Liaoning.

Li Yaqiang, a Beijing-based military expert, told Lianhe Zaobao in an interview that the Fujian and Liaoning may carry out dual-carrier formation drills. Although the Fujian was recently commissioned and the two ships may have differences in training subjects and technical requirements, this will not hinder basic collaborative combat training between them.

Joaquin Camarena, a former intelligence analyst with the U.S. Marine Corps, posted on social media platform X that the joint drills between the Fujian and Liaoning in the Yellow Sea aim to develop necessary operational doctrines for the Fujian to conduct dual-carrier combat drills with the Shandong, Liaoning, and other future carriers. He also noted that the drills will confirm that the Chinese Navy primarily uses the Liaoning as a test platform for carrier operational theories and equipment development.

Beyond the Yellow Sea, Li Yaqiang said it “would not be surprising” if the Fujian and Liaoning break through the First Island Chain into the Western Pacific during dual-carrier drills, given that it is “too close—right at our doorstep.”

However, he emphasized that it is still premature to deploy the Fujian for combat operations beyond the Second Island Chain, primarily because the number of carrier-based aircraft is not yet fully equipped. Additionally, there is still room for improvement in combat capabilities such as aircraft catapult and recovery, maintenance support, target guidance, and enemy strikes.

More than a month after China’s third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, was officially commissioned, satellite images circulating online show that the Fujian was photographed alongside the Liaoning—another carrier that had completed training in the Western Pacific and was berthed at Qingdao Naval Base—last Thursday (December 18). Military experts assess that the Fujian and Liaoning may conduct dual-carrier formation drills in the Yellow Sea, and it would not be surprising if they cross the First Island Chain into the Western Pacific.


Taiwan’s military recently released surveillance footage indicating that the Fujian sailed through the Taiwan Strait last Tuesday (December 16)—its first transit of the strait since commissioning—triggering widespread attention across Taiwan. The following day, Taiwan’s Defense Minister Gu Lixiong told the Legislative Yuan during interpellation that no carrier-based aircraft were observed on the Fujian’s flight deck, predicting it was returning to the Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai’s Changxing Island for defect improvements.

However, Lü Lishi, a former Taiwan Navy captain and military expert, posted on Facebook that the Fujian actually continued northward, attaching satellite photos showing the Fujian and Liaoning moored together at Qingdao Naval Base last Thursday. He sarcastically remarked, “The Fujian has arrived in Qingdao, not Changxing Island as claimed by the ‘Lawyer Minister’ (referring to Gu Lixiong).”

The Fujian is China’s first electromagnetic catapult-equipped aircraft carrier, commissioned on November 5 this year in Sanya, Hainan. According to a November 18 announcement by the Chinese Navy, the Fujian carrier group conducted its first real-combat maritime training, during which multiple types of carrier-based aircraft including the J-35, J-15T, J-15DT, and KJ-600 completed multiple catapult takeoffs and landings on the Fujian. This effectively tested the ship’s electromagnetic catapult, recovery, and deck operation capabilities, further verifying ship-aircraft compatibility—with the military publicly revealing the J-15DT’s takeoffs and landings on the Fujian for the first time.

Prior to the Fujian’s commissioning, China’s first and second carriers, the Liaoning and Shandong, conducted their first dual-carrier formation drills in the South China Sea in October last year. They again launched dual-carrier drills in the Western Pacific in June this year, crossing the Second Island Chain and drawing heightened attention from Japan and the United States.

Since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi raised the “Taiwan contingency theory” early last month, China-Japan relations have remained tense. China has carried out military missions or live-fire exercises in the Bohai Sea and Yellow Sea, with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) launching another week-long military mission in the northern Yellow Sea starting last Sunday (December 21). The Liaoning carrier group conducted open-sea training east of the Miyako Strait on December 6, sparking a standoff between Chinese and Japanese military aircraft at sea.

Regarding the Fujian’s northward voyage, a Chinese military blogger analyzed on Weibo that the Fujian is likely heading to receive additional carrier-based aircraft and may conduct joint drills with the Liaoning.

Li Yaqiang, a Beijing-based military expert, told Lianhe Zaobao in an interview that the Fujian and Liaoning may carry out dual-carrier formation drills. Although the Fujian was recently commissioned and the two ships may have differences in training subjects and technical requirements, this will not hinder basic collaborative combat training between them.

Joaquin Camarena, a former intelligence analyst with the U.S. Marine Corps, posted on social media platform X that the joint drills between the Fujian and Liaoning in the Yellow Sea aim to develop necessary operational doctrines for the Fujian to conduct dual-carrier combat drills with the Shandong, Liaoning, and other future carriers. He also noted that the drills will confirm that the Chinese Navy primarily uses the Liaoning as a test platform for carrier operational theories and equipment development.

Beyond the Yellow Sea, Li Yaqiang said it “would not be surprising” if the Fujian and Liaoning break through the First Island Chain into the Western Pacific during dual-carrier drills, given that it is “too close—right at our doorstep.”

However, he emphasized that it is still premature to deploy the Fujian for combat operations beyond the Second Island Chain, primarily because the number of carrier-based aircraft is not yet fully equipped. Additionally, there is still room for improvement in combat capabilities such as aircraft catapult and recovery, maintenance support, target guidance, and enemy strikes.