How Powerful Was the Chinese Fleet in the Country’s First Far Seas Twin Carrier Ops?

<p >On June 10 the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy for the first time deployed two aircraft for simultaneous operations beyond the Second Island Chain in the Western Pacific, with the carrier Liaoning transiting through the Miyako Strait from the East China Sea, while the second carrier, the Shandong, entered the Philippine Sea via the Luzon Strait. The Liaoning’s exercises including flight operations and manoeuvring drills took it within 1000 kilometres of Guam, a key hub of American operations in the Pacific which is expected to be a <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/nkorea-launches-mach12-hypersonic-glide-hwasong16b" target="_blank">priority target</a> in the event of a regional war. The carrier operations represented a major show of force, at a time when China is rapidly improving its carrier capabilities with the<a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-rival-ford-supercarriers-nears-service-entry-fujian" > imminent service entry</a> of the country’s first supercarrier the Fujian, as well as new aviation assets such as the KJ-600 AEW&C and the <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-fc31-trials-deck" >FC-31 stealth fighter</a>. At the heart of the Liaoning’s carrier group were two Type 055 destroyers, two Type 052D destroyers, a Type 054A frigate, a Type 901 fast combat support ship, and a Type 903A replenishment ship. The Shandong's strike group included one Type 055 destroyer, one Type 052D destroyer, two Type 054A frigates, and a Type 901 support ship. </p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/06/12/article_684b67f3307411_65877454.JPG" title="J-15B Fighters Overfly the Liaoning During First Dual Carrier Drills"></p><p >Although China has operated dual carrier groups simultaneously multiple times in the past, doing so <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/chinese-dual-carrier-group-incoming">for the first time </a>in the South China Sea in December 2021, not only have carrier groups become significantly more capable since then, but the ability to do so beyond the Second Island Chain also demonstrates greater confidence in the fleet. The fleet conducted its first ever <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/chinese-carrier-operational-j15b-j15d">dual carrier drills</a>, with strike groups operating side by side, in November 2024. Since carrier operations were intensified in 2022, Chinese carriers have on multiple occasions demonstrated the ability to launch rapid sorties near major U.S. military facilities in East Asia. In May 2022, for example, the Liaoning launched <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/chinese-aircraft-carrier-liaoning-launchers-over-100-fighter-sorties-near-american-military-bases-on-okinawa">over 100 sorties </a>near American military facilities in Okinawa. In April the following year the Shandong <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-carrier-drills-guam-record">led major exercises</a> near Guam. The two ships were revealed in November 2024 to have seen the capabilities of their air wings <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/chinese-carrier-operational-j15b-j15d">significantly improved</a> with the integration of new ‘4+ generation’ combat jets, namely the J-15B fighter and J-15D electronic attack jet. The J-15B was long expected to provide far superior air-to-air capabilities to other fourth generation fighters, with advantages over prior J-15s including higher use of more advanced composite materials for a lighter and more durable airframe, use of a more advanced AESA radar, and integration of advanced <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-researching-means-to-provide-fourth-generation-aircraft-with-advanced-stealth-capabilities-initial-technologies-first-deployed-in-early-2018">stealth coatings</a>, and use of some of the world's most sophisticated avionics and electronic warfare systems. The J-15D is expected to serve as a key force multiplier, providing much needed protection by disrupting enemy attacks, while being able to take to the offensive against enemy air defences. </p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/06/12/article_684b68257b2230_13406147.png" title="Chinese PLA Navy Type 055 Class Destroyer"></p><p >At the heart of the groups of surface combatants supporting carrier operations, the <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/destroyer-lhasa-drills-near-japan" >Type 055 destroyer</a> has been widely assessed by both Chinese and Western sources to be the world’s most capable warship of its kind. This contrasts to the standings of the Liaoning and Shandong themselves, which are considered much more constrained in their capabilities compared to supercarriers  such as the Fujian or the American Gerald Ford Class. The Type 055 has in the past during simulated exercises <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/chinese-navy-wargame-advanced-type055-eight-american" >demonstrated</a> the potential to neutralise eight U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke Class destroyers when operating with adequate drone support. Displacing between 12,000 and <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-s-new-type-055-class-destroyers-are-even-larger-and-more-powerful-than-previously-believed" >13,000 tons</a>, the Type 055 is prized for its large armaments suite, at the centre of which lies an arsenal of 112 vertical launch cells. Its use of a dual band radar system, similar to those the U.S. Navy had intended but failed to integrate onto the Zumwalt Class destroyer, is thought to provide a situational awareness advantage over Western, Japanese and Russian ships which makes the Type 055 potentially ideal for both employing long range missiles and tracking those deployed by adversaries. The ship class’ capabilities have continued to be rapidly improved, and in April 2022 Type 055s began being used for <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/china-s-type-055-destroyer-tests-new-hypersonic-ballistic-missile-designed-to-one-shot-kill-enemy-warships" >flight testing</a> of the new YJ-21 hypersonic ballistic missile, which is currently considered the most capable anti-ship missile class deployed by warships anywhere in the world. The Type 055 integrates multi-layered air defences which, alongside those of the Type 052D and to a much lesser extent the Type 054A, are relied on heavily to protect aircraft carriers and the remainder of their strike groups. </p>