China’s new unconventional aircraft carrier captured in satellite imagery PHOTO

China appears to have constructed a new and unconventional aircraft carrier, drawing interest from experts as this potentially unique vessel could enhance Beijing’s swiftly growing maritime capabilities.

Satellite images from Planet Labs depict a ship with a large, open flat deck under construction at Guangzhou Shipyard International on Longxue Island, located in the southern province of Guangdong, Caliber.Az reports citing US media.

According to Thomas Shugart, a former US Navy submarine commander and current fellow at the Center for a New American Security, this prospective aircraft carrier features an “unusual shape and size,” being significantly smaller than China’s previous naval aircraft carriers. He notes that the vessel is even smaller than the Type 075 amphibious assault ships currently used by the Chinese navy, leading him to speculate that China may be developing the world’s first “ostensibly civilian ‘aircraft carrier’ as an oceanographic research vessel of some kind.”

China has been rapidly producing advanced warships, often on par with US carrier technology. Earlier this year, the aircraft carrier Fujian — China’s largest, most modern, and most powerful carrier to date — set sail for its initial trials. Experts anticipate that it could be integrated into the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) fleet by 2026.

Weighing in at 80,000 tons, the Fujian eclipses the PLAN’s two operational carriers, the 66,000-ton Shandong and the 60,000-ton Liaoning, placing it among the ranks of supercarriers; only the United States Navy operates carriers larger than the Fujian.

Additionally, China is making swift advancements in the construction of the world’s largest amphibious assault ship, known as the Type 076, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.

The Type 076's flight deck measures approximately 260 meters (853 feet) in length and 52 meters (170 feet) in width, encompassing over 13,500 square meters—an area nearly equivalent to three US football fields, as per the think tank's satellite imagery analysis.

Together, the Fujian and the Type 076 represent the pinnacle of a military expansion that has established the Chinese navy as the world’s largest, boasting more than 340 warships.

By Tamilla Hasanova