China's first aircraft carrier held its second sea trial on Tuesday morning amid speculation that take-off and landing experiments for carrier-based jet fighters would be part of the test.
After its maiden voyage in August and follow-up refitting and testing, the vessel left its port in Dalian, Liaoning Province again to conduct scientific research and experiments, said a statement from the Ministry of National Defense.
The ministry did not reveal how long the trial would last.
"The carrier moved out of its berth with the help of six to seven tugboats and sailed into the ocean at around 10 am," a military enthusiast who claimed to have witnessed the departure of the giant ship told the Global Times.
This time, carrier-based aircraft are likely to run landing and take-off tests, as the ship had been repainted with a landing zone and guiding signs on the deck, the Beijing-based Legal Daily reported, citing anonymous military sources and witness accounts.
However, Bai Wei, the former deputy chief editor of Aviation World Monthly, told the Global Times that on Tuesday's trial might just involve take-off and landing of the helicopters, although tests for carrier-based fighter jets are possible in the next six months.
In May, the Xinhua News Agency published an article carrying a picture showing the under-development J-15, which many speculate is China's first carrier-based heavyweight fighter jet.
Lan Yun, a defense observer and editor at Modern Ships magazine, told the Global Times that if the experiments and tests are successful, China could begin mass producing the fighter jet.
Since the carrier has not been equipped with a catapult, the potential of the J-15 could not be brought into full play as the fighter cannot take off with maximum fuel capacity and payload, Lan said.
"A fleet of these jets would have limited combat capability, but could be used in some occasions in the future, such as a sea conflict sparked by a territorial dispute," Lan added.
Bai agreed, suggesting that the major role of the J-15 in the future would be to boost the carrier fleet's air defense capability.
"Carrying six rounds of air-to-air missiles, the J-15 can perform combat air patrol missions within a very long radius. The carrier fleet cannot fight with a very capable enemy in the deep ocean, but it can extend China's line of defense alone with land-based fighter jets."
"The carrier and the J-15 are just the beginning. China will develop more capable carriers and carrier-based fighters," Bai asserted.
The carrier was originally built by the former Soviet Union and called Varyag, but the ship was still under construction when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.
Ukraine disarmed it and removed its engines, leaving the ship an empty shell when China bought it.
The vessel, an Admiral Kuznetsov-class aircraft carrier 304.5 meters in length and 37 meters wide with a displacement of 58,500 metric tons, was totally refitted in China for its new role as a research and training platform.
on Tuesday's trial came shortly after US President Barack Obama announced a military boost in Australia earlier this month to support Washington's role in the Asia-Pacific region.
The US side also expressed an intention to intervene in territorial disputes in the South China Sea by confronting Chinese leaders with the issue at the East Asia Summit, which resulted in strong objections from the Chinese side.
Meanwhile, the new trial was launched amid an annual drill by China's navy in the Pacific, which drew close attention from Japan.
A senior naval research expert told the Global Times on condition of anonymity that the carrier's second trial was just a routine practice scheduled by the Chinese navy and had no connection with the increased US presence in the region.
When asked about the purpose of the second sea trial, Hong Lei, a spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, "China sticks to the path of peaceful development and upholds a defense policy that is defensive in nature. China will always be a major force in safeguarding regional and world peace."
Currently, the US, Britain, France, Russia, Spain, Italy, India, Brazil and Thailand, operate a total of 21 active-service aircraft carriers.
Zhu Shanshan and agencies contributed to this story