The symbol of Chinese prestige and Naval might, aircraft carrier Liaoning appears to have
some operational limitations, as per US Navy Commander.
The reference included an encounter between US Mustin and Liaoning.
Viewers may note that last year USS Mustin tailed the Liaoning in the disputed South
China Sea and was able to photograph and observe the aircraft carrier from very close range.
This is one of the most interesting run-ins between surface combatants of the two navies.
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why US Navy Commander has stated that China’s
Liaoning aircraft carrier has 'operating restriction'?
Let's get started.
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While recollecting the incident, Vice-Admiral Roy Kitchener, the commander of the US Naval
Surface Forces, claimed the Chinese carrier was subject to “operating restrictions.”
He stated at the annual Surface Navy Association conference that US crew members “realized
that at some point all the Chinese escorts sort of backed off” because “there’s
some operating restrictions that they had around the carrier”.
He added, “USS Mustin didn’t have those (restrictions), they proceeded on in, found
a good station, and sat alongside taking pictures and doing other things for quite a bit of
time.”
The captain and deputy commander of the USS Mustin sat side by side in one snap, watching
the Liaoning, which was only a few kilometers away.
The captain had his feet up in a nonchalant pose as the pair laid their eyes on China's
prized asset.
The photo was extensively circulated throughout the world and perceived as a message to the
People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).
Speaking at a press conference, Wu Qian, a spokesman for China’s defense ministry had
criticized the US for disrupting the military drill.
Mr. Wu had claimed the US vessel “severely disrupted” the aircraft carrier group led
by the Liaoning.
He added that the destroyer’s “persistent close-range reconnaissance” threatened “the
safety of vessels and crew.” and described the USS Mustin’s actions as “very vile
in nature.”
The ease with which US Navy personnel were able to photograph Chinese aircraft carriers
was a key point of discussion last year.
Lu Li-shih, a former instructor at Taiwan’s Naval Academy in Kaohsiung, was quoted by
South China Morning Post as saying, “The Liaoning may have been busy with a complicated
drill, allowing US officers to take photos.”
Song Zhongping, a former Chinese military instructor, argued that the PLA followed pre-planned
voyage routines, but the operational parameters of American crews were more flexible.
Lu said, “It’s very common for warships to sail so close for parallel monitoring in
unexpected encounters at high sea.
But it’s rare for the captain and his deputy to sit together, showing that the Liaoning
gave the USS Mustin quite a lot of time to take the picture because of its operating
restrictions.”
Liaoning is actually built from a Soviet-era Kuznetsov-class carrier hull.
The Kuznetsov-class aircraft carriers were the last class of aircraft carriers designed
for the Soviet Navy.
Two hulls were laid down in Ukraine before the Soviet Union collapsed.
Kuznetsov is part of the Russian Navy.
The other hulk was purchased in 1998 by the People's Republic of China and towed to Dalian
shipyard in northeast China.
After being completely rebuilt and undergoing sea trials, the ship was commissioned into
the People's Liberation Army Navy.
It has a displacement of around 60,000 tonnes and is conventionally powered.
Liaoning uses a ski ramp to assist aircraft takeoffs.
Ski-jump aircraft carriers have limitations, regarding how much ordnance can be loaded
on to the aircraft.
For example, the J-15, when launched from the Liaoning, can only carry 4000 pounds of
ordnance before it reaches its minimum airspeed requirement, conversely, the F 18 Super Hornet
can carry over 12000 pounds of ordnance on a catapult aircraft carrier.
The carrier is also doesn't carry aircraft like E-2C Hawkeye & EA-18G Growler.
Northrop Grumman’s E-2C Hawkeye is a carrier-capable AWACS aircraft that is primarily designed
to give long-range warning of incoming aerial threats whereas EA-18G Growler is an airborne
electronic attack aircraft and is used for Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD), particularly
at the start and on-going early stages of hostilities.
The absence of these kinds of specialized aircraft is a vital deficiency.
China’s muscle-flexing has been persistent for a long time now.
Time and again it has shown utter disregard for international laws and norms and threatens
its neighbors.
Liaoning aircraft carrier is being used as a tool by the Chinese Communist Party to intimidate
rivals.
China has been using physiological warfare on its much smaller neighbor.
China’s strategy relies on low-intensity but constant and simultaneous small provocations
at multiple pressure points.
This serves to stretch thin the capabilities of nations like the Philippines & Vietnam
to respond while limiting the risk of escalation to a manageable level.
On that particular occasion, U.S Navy is took a leaf out of Chinese books and applied it
against China.
The pressure has exposed issues in Chinese Aircraft carriers and the way they operate
in open ocean.