Can China leapfrog the US in the scramble for the world’s best aircraft carrier?

China’s systems to launch and catch carrier-based aircraft are more advanced than those ­designed for the new generation of US supercarriers, according to a ­Chinese expert in the technology.

Rear Admiral Ma Weiming, a top engineer working on the project, said on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress on Monday that China had made breakthroughs in its advanced ­arresting gear (AAG) system designed to retrieve aircraft at sea, while the US had stumbled.

“The Gerald Ford cancelled its AAG and reverted to its original [arresting wire] system. We have no such problem,” he said, referring to the US’ new class of aircraft carrier.

He also said China’s electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) was more advanced than comparable US technology.

“We have long overcome [all technical difficulties in EMALS]. I have ­already moved on from this [area of research and development],” he said.

Saying he was just a scientific researcher, Ma declined to say when his advanced technologies would be installed on China’s homegrown carriers.