Q&A about aircraft carrier “Liaoning ship”

People have many questions and concerns regarding the first aircraft carrier in the history of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA). The reporter has sorted out some relevant knowledge in the form of questions & answers.

Q: Can you give an introduction of the basic technical parameters of the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship"?

A: The aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" is 300-odd meters long, 70-odd meters wide and 60-odd meters high from the keel to the mast. There are 10 levels beneath the main deck, and 9 levels of island-style structures above the main deck. The normal displacement of the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" is 50,000-plus tons.

Q: What is the official organization of the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship"? And how many personnel it has?

A: The aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" is established as a division-level ship and staffed with 1,000-plus personnel.

Q: Is the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" a conventional aircraft carrier or a nuclear-powered one?

A: The aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" is a conventional aircraft carrier.

Q: How does the carrier-based aircraft take off from the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship"?

A: The aircraft carrier provides three different ways of take-off: the ejection takeoff, the ski-jump takeoff, and the vertical takeoff. The aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" can carry fixed-wing aircraft as well as helicopters as designed. The fixed-wing aircraft adopts the way of ski-jump takeoff.

Q: How high is the localization degree of the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship"?

A: The aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" was reconstructed from an old aircraft carrier platform through our promotion of independent innovation, research and development. The ship-borne aircraft on the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" were also developed and produced domestically, and relevant work is moving forward as scheduled.

Q: What is the on-board staff structure of the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship"?

A: Among the crew on board, non-commissioned officers account for two-thirds of the total, while the officers and the compulsory servicemen take up each half of the other one-third. Over 98% of the officers aboard the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" have college or higher degrees, and among them, 50-odd people possess master degree or above. Basically, all the servicemen have finished at least high school education, and 30% of them have received college education.

Q: What is life like aboard the aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" for the officers and men?

A: The aircraft carrier "Liaoning ship" has messes, supermarket, post office, laundry rooms, gym, rubbish disposal stations and so on. Even the bars have both the noisy type and the quiet type. Therefore, the life is relatively convenient on board.