The Chinese tested the starts using an electromagnetic catapult at Fujian airport

The Chinese Navy announced the successful conduct of the first starts using the electromagnetic catapult and landing on board Fujian – said the government daily Renmin Ribao on Tuesday. This is a key stage of testing before entering the unit into service.

J-15T, J-35 fighters and an an aircraft of early warning Congjing-600 took part in the rehearsals. It was not disclosed when and in what waters these tests took place.

State media emphasize that successful surgery suggests Fujian's “initial operational capacity”, which opens the way to the integration of various types of machines with the ship's combat group.

According to experts, this is a key step in the strategic transformation of the Chinese Navy.

Quoted by Dziennik Han Wei, a professor at the Naval Aviation University of the People's Army (ALW), he expressed the view that this success “will provide key support for combat operations in distant (areas) maritime and accelerate the strategic transformation of the Navy from the defense of the coast to (action) in distant waters.”

Three Types of Carrier-Based Aircraft, Including J-15T, J-35 and KJ-600, Completed Catapult Launch and Landing Training on the Board The Plans Fujian for the First Time This Year, Demonstrating The Fujian's Capability of Electromagnetic Catapult and Recovers Operations. pic.twitter.com/xatts1yctu

– Chinanavy (@china_navy) Seppember 22, 2025

The editor-in-chief of the Hangkong Zhishi magazine, Wang Ya'nan, assessed that the J-35 fighter, made in Stealth technology, is to be the basic machine of on-board aviation operating at Fujian. Other types of aircraft, such as the modernized J-15T jacket fighter, J-15D fighter, intended for radio-electronic fight, and an early KJ-600 warning aircraft, are to create a “complete, balanced and efficient combat system”-said the Global Times government.

Fujian, the largest and most advanced Chinese aircraft carrier, is currently in the sea tests phase. Two older units, Liaoning (in service since 2012) and Shandong (introduced to service in 2019), unlike Fujian, are equipped with a ski-jump starting ramp.

In mid -September, the media reported about the Fujian cruise through the Taiwan Strait in order to conduct training tests and missions in the South China Sea. At that time, Chinese experts pointed out that this cruise may suggest that the unit would soon enter service.

From Beijing Krzysztof Pawliszak (PAP)

KRP/ RTT/