Overview

• A new CCTV report suggests the 80,000-ton Fujian could be commissioned as early as next month, though the timeline remains unconfirmed.
• Chinese outlets speculate the ceremony could align with wartime anniversaries in early or mid-September, a linkage that has not been officially announced.
• Recent imagery reported by the South China Morning Post shows final yard work complete, including removed scaffolding and a cleared flight deck.
• Since its maiden voyage in May 2024, the carrier has completed eight sea trials totaling 117 days, a longer test program than Liaoning, Shandong, and France’s Charles de Gaulle.
• Fujian is China’s first domestically designed carrier with three electromagnetic launchers and a planned five-part air wing, and it would become Asia’s largest warship once in service.