China to start landing drills on carrier

BEIJING: The Chinese military could on Saturday launch air exercises on the nation's first aircraft carrier which was unveiled earlier this week, state media reported.

The manoeuvres could include aircraft approaching the ship, landing and then quickly taking off again, the Global Times newspaper said, citing a military source said to be closely involved with the landing drills.

The aircraft carrier embarked on its inaugural sea trial on Wednesday, prompting the United States to call for an explanation amid concerns about the nation's military expansion.

Beijing only recently confirmed it was revamping an old Soviet ship to be its first carrier and has sought to play down the vessel's capability, saying it will mainly be used for training and "research".

The Global Times report said that radio restrictions have been imposed in a maritime zone off the coast of the country's northest Liaoning province where the carrier is docked.

The planes being used for the drills are the Shenyang J-15, a Chinese version of Russia's Sukhoi Su-33 Flanker, it added.

The ministry of defence in Beijing refused to confirm if the exercises would take place on Saturday.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011