China’s only aircraft carrier in service, the Liaoning, is now in the South China Sea for a six-day drill that began on Thursday, state papers have confirmed. Reuters has also reported that the Liaoning strike group has sailed into waters close to the southern province of Hainan, flanked by 40 other warships and submarines, as seen in a satellite image. Observers believe these vessels may be from the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s three major fleets, as Beijing wants a variety of vessels from different naval command regions to sail with the Liaoning to hone their inter-fleet interoperability.
