Page 16 - Australian Defence Magazine July-August 2022

16 NEWS REVIEW REGIONAL OUTLOOK
JULY-AUGUST 2022 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
CHINA LAUNCHES THIRD AIRCRAFT CARRIER
MIKE YEO I MELBOURNE
CHINA has launched its third and largest aircraft carrier to date at a shipyard in Shanghai, the first of its type there to fea- ture a catapult aircraft launch system.
The ship, which was indigenously de- signed and built, was christened as the Fujian, named after the Chinese province opposite Taiwan, according to China’s state-run news agency Xinhua. It was launched at the Shanghai shipyard where it had undergone construction since 2018.
China’s CGTN reported that the Fujian is fitted with an electro-magnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS), with photos showing three such systems are fitted on board the conventionally-powered ship.
It added that the Fujian displaces some 80,000 tons fully loaded, while measure- ments of its flight deck based on satellite im- agery suggests it is about 316 meters (1037 feet) long.
The installation of catapults would al- low the new ship to launch heavier aircraft such as the Xian KJ-600 turboprop air- borne early warning aircraft, which is cur- rently undergoing flight tests. China is also developing an electronic attack variant of its J-15 carrier-borne fighter and is believed to be developing a variant of the stealthy FC-31 export fighter for carrier operations.
China’s two existing carriers are fitted with a ski ramp in lieu of catapults, lim- iting their ability to launch heavier force- multiplier aircraft such as the KJ-600.
VALIANT SHIELD CONCLUDES
Two US Navy supercarriers and a smaller amphibious assault ship configured as an aircraft carrier have concluded an exercise in the Pacific Ocean off Guam, testing a variety of warfighting concepts for a peer conflict in the Indo-Pacific.
The exercise, codenamed Valiant Shield, concluded on 17 June after having taken place at various locations in the Central Pacific including Palau, Naval Base Guam, Andersen Air Force Base, and in the off- shore Mariana Island Range Complex.
The Abraham Lincoln and the Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Groups, together with amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA-7), which was configured as a “Light- ning carrier” carrying at least 14 Short Take Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters on board, took part in the exercise.
Other activities at the exercise saw Ma- rines fly a M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) to perform a HI- MARS Rapid Infiltration (HI-RAIN) via a US Air Force C-130J airlifter while the US Army conducted a live-firing of a Patriot surface to air missile on the island of Palau.
LEFT: China has launched its third and largest aircraft carrier
The exercise culminated in the sinking of the decommissioned ex-USS Vandegrift (FFG 48) in a sinking exercise (SINKEX) utilising a variety of air- and ship-launched munitions.
SOUTH KOREAN AIRCRAFT TO MAKE PITCH BLACK DEBUT
Japan and South Korea will both send air- craft to northern Australia in August to take part in the upcoming Exercise Pitch Black.
The Republic of Korea Air Force (RO- KAF) will send six KF-16C/D fighter jets and a single KC-330 tanker to the North- ern Territory for this year’s iteration of the multilateral air combat exercise, marking the first time South Korea is sending air- craft to the biennial exercise.
The KC-330 is the South Korea designa- tion of the Airbus A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT), which is designated the KC-30A in Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) service.
The ROKAF will debut at Pitch Black this year alongside fellow debutante Japan, which will send its Mitsubishi F-2 to the exercise. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force had suc- cessfully conducted refuelling trials of its F-2s with the RAAF’s KC-30A tankers in April.
JAPANESE MARITIME TASK
FORCE TAKES TO SEA
A task force centred around the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter destroyer JS Izumo, which is being converted to operated fixed wing aircraft, has taken to sea for a four-month Indo-Pacific deployment.
The Izumo will be accompanied by the destroyers JS Takanami and JS Kirisame as well as an unnamed submarine for the Indo-Pacific Deployment 2022 voyage, which is set to take place June 13-Oct 28. Helicopters will also attend the deploy- ment aboard the ships.
The JMSDF task force will have a num- ber of interactions with the ADF during their voyage, including participation at the multinational exercises RIMPAC off Hawaii, Kakadu off Australia and Pacific Vanguard in the Pacific. ■
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