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| Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier |
While Chinese internet users have been discussing where the country will build bases for its future aircraft carriers, PLA spokesperson Yang Yujun told the Global Times that they will have to wait and see.
After the military declared that it is likely to operate a total number of four aircraft carriers in the future, experts hypothesized that the nation will thus need at least four carrier bases. The Zhoushan islands off the coast of Zhejiang province and Sanya in Hainan province are considered the best candidates to house two major carrier bases for the PLA Navy's East and South sea fleets, respectively.
In addition, two more support bases may be built. Qingdao, the home port of China's first and so far only carrier, the Liaoning, may be such a base, while another could be built outside of China, the experts speculated.
Read the full story at Want China Times