bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Kristin Huang

The exercise in October was typical.
Along with a Japanese helicopter carrier, Britain’s HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier joined two American carriers, the USS Ronald Reagan and USS Carl Vinson, to patrol the waters around Taiwan.
The patrol by multiple aircraft carriers came amid a spike in tensions between China and the United States and served to show the participants’ resolve to maintain a “free and open” Indo-Pacific.
In addition to patrols and exercises by the vessels, more countries are joining the aircraft carrier club.
Japan is modifying the Izumo-class destroyer to operate the F-35B fighter and South Korea relaunched its aircraft carrier plan.
China is also preparing to launch its third aircraft carrier, its first with an advanced electromagnetic catapult.
The behemoths are physical and symbolic manifestations of military might and resolve and ever more visible in regional waters.
But observers say more communication is needed to ease friction between countries.


Timothy Heath, a senior international defence researcher from the US think tank Rand Corporation, said aircraft carriers were often deployed to send political messages.
“The use of aircraft carriers to send messages and demonstrate muscle-flexing is a symptom of a world featuring more tension and military crises,” Heath said.
“Governments around the world hope to avoid war so they rely on military forces to send messages of deterrence and warning.
“Aircraft carriers are some of the most high profile military platforms available and well suited for signalling. However, in terms of combat capabilities aircraft carriers have become highly vulnerable in an era of long-range anti-ship cruise and ballistic missiles.”
Heath said he expected militaries to carry out exercises and training to ensure readiness and signal deterrence, but active diplomacy to ease tensions could complement such efforts to promote greater security for all.
China delays launch of Type 003 aircraft carrier
James Bosbotinis, a specialist in defence and international affairs, said governments should work to strengthen communication and develop confidence-building measures to manage geopolitical tensions.
“In this regard, the Shangri-La Dialogue being held in Singapore is valuable. While demonstrating credible combat power, aircraft carriers and their task groups can also contribute importantly to naval diplomacy,” Bosbotinis said, referring to an Asia-Pacific security forum held in Singapore on the weekend.
“Through activities such as port visits and training exercises, naval forces contribute to diplomatic activity; moreover, the naval forces of rivals can engage in confidence-building activities to reduce tensions, even undertaking port visits which help build interactions at multiple levels.”
However, Drew Thompson, a visiting senior research fellow at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, said it was not proper to interpret messages from aircraft carriers too much.
“Aircraft carriers are not comparable, and they serve specific purposes, generally to project power over long distances, not towards other carriers,” he said.


Have China’s plans for a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier taken another step forward?

Why the J-35 Gyrfalcon is crucial to China’s power projection on the high seas

China’s J-35 stealth fighter to be suited up for aircraft carrier service

Updated Chinese J-15 fighter jet spotted in aircraft carrier drill footage

China’s aircraft carriers

Say it with aircraft carriers: why countries send in the big ships

US Navy carrier strike groups led by flagships USS Ronald Reagan and USS Carl Vinson join Japanese helicopter destroyer JS Ise and a British carrier strike group led by HMS Queen Elizabeth for group operations in the Philippine Sea in October. Photo: US Indo-Pacific Command

Drones included in refit for China’s second aircraft carrier Shandong

The Shandong, China’s second aircraft carrier, was commissioned in December 2019. Photo: ifeng

A PLA Navy video has included a brief glimpse of seven unmanned aerial vehicles on the deck of the Shandong, China’s second aircraft carrier. Photo: Weixin

Shanghai shipyard clears the docks ahead of expected carrier launch

China to launch its largest and most advanced aircraft carrier—the Type 003. Photo: CSIS

China’s Liaoning carrier group ends Pacific navy drills ‘aimed at Taiwan independence forces’

Japan observed the take-off and landing of carrier-based J-15 fighters from the Chinese aircraft carrier the Liaoning on May 3, 2022.  Photo: Japan Ministry of Defence

China’s military uses fake US aircraft carrier for missile target practice

A satellite picture shows a carrier target in Ruoqiang, Xinjiang, China, on October 20, 2021. Photo: ©2021 Maxar Technologies

A satellite picture shows a rail terminus and target storage building in Ruoqiang, Xinjiang, China, October 7, 2021. Satellite Image ©2021 Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS. ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT. MUST NOT OBSCURE LOGO.

News

China

Military


The vessels can send a political message in a time of tension, analyst says
But active diplomacy is needed to ensure security for all, he says



Say it with aircraft carriers: why countries send in the big ships

The vessels can send a political message in a time of tension, analyst says But active diplomacy is needed to ensure security for all, he says

The vessels can send a political message in a time of tension, analyst says

But active diplomacy is needed to ensure security for all, he says