Aircraft carrier sails into Hong Kong on maiden visit

HONG KONG: China’s first aircraft carrier sailed into Hong Kong waters yesterday, in Beijing’s latest show of growing military might at a time of rising regional tension.

Tourists and residents gathered to catch a glimpse of the massive carrier on its maiden visit to Hong Kong, part of celebrations marking 20 years since the handover of the city from British to Chinese rule.

The Liaoning was accompanied by two destroyers and other ships from its strike group, with jet fighters and helicopters visible on the flight deck alongside hundreds of crew dressed in white uniforms.

Anchoring off Lantau island in the harbour’s outer reaches, the carrier was flanked by a protective cordon of marine police craft and a locally based Chinese navy corvette.

Police boats sounded horns to prevent private vessels getting any closer than a few hundred meters of the Liaoning.

“The Liaoning’s visit shows that China is a militarily superior country,” said Jack Chan, a retired businessman, who was watching the aircraft carrier from an oceanfront park.

Thousands of Hong Kong residents queued for hours on Monday for just 2,000 tickets for access to the vessel this weekend. Many left empty handed.

China’s first domestically built carrier was launched in April but is not yet operational. Even though the former Russian naval ship is being used as a training vessel for China’s rapidly modernising navy, its recent voyages through tense regional seas have been closely followed in Hong Kong, which is more used to hosting US carriers and other foreign warships.

“Liaoning’s visit definitely gives the central government a chance to display its military power,” said Sean Moran, a tourist from the United States, as the ship passed on a blustery morning.

“It’s quite a positive and smart strategy to step up publicity overall.”

US consulate officials said they had yet to be invited on board the Liaoning. The US navy often hosts People’s Liberation Army officers on ships visiting Hong Kong, sometimes flying Chinese military chiefs to aircraft carriers.

The Liaoning’s most recent drills at the weekend included operations in the Taiwan Strait that were closely monitored by Taiwan’s military.

The Liaoning began sea trials as China’s first aircraft carrier in 2011 and has more recently conducted fully integrated drills with its complement of J-15 jet fighters and a variety of support ships.