In the winter of 2014, after three years of stringent training, Xu and his fellow pilots conducted their first landing on the Liaoning, becoming the first carrier-borne fighter jet aviators trained by the Navy. It was commissioned in September 2012, becoming the PLA Navy's first aircraft carrier. The Liaoning was refitted from the unfinished Soviet-era carrier Varyag. And then I got lost inside it until someone led me out." "I was full of curiosity and excitement as we walked through the massive vessel, which seemed like a maze to me. ![]() During the training period, we were given a guided tour of the ship," he recalled. We were receiving training at that time to pilot carrier-based fighter jets. "When I boarded the CNS Liaoning for the first time in 2011, the carrier was still in the middle of the outfitting process. "It is a privilege for me to be a witness to the birth and growth of the People's Liberation Army Navy's aircraft carrier forces," said Xu, the executive officer of the CNS Shandong, the country's second carrier after the CNS Liaoning, and the first one built domestically.Įleven years ago, he was one of the first veteran aviators selected by the PLA Navy from the PLA Air Force to undertake training to fly carrier-borne fighter jets. To Senior Captain Xu Ying, the past 10 years have been a decade full of struggle, challenges, aspirations and accomplishments. Įditor's Note: To mark the 95th anniversary of the founding of the People's Liberation Army, China Daily is publishing a series of stories elaborating on Xi Jinping Thought on Strengthening the Military, expounding its main ideas from different angles. France will operate its E-2Ds from its carrier, Charles de Gaulle, while Japan's E-2Ds will be land-based.Soldiers of the First Company of the PLA's 83rd Army Group train in a teamwork drill. Japan has ordered 13, three of which have been delivered, while France has ordered three, which are expected to be delivered by 2027.īoth countries already operate older E-2 models. The service's ultimate goal is to have 22 E-2Ds operational at any time, and because of the aircraft's importance, the Navy hopes to keep it flying well into the 2040s. The Navy asked Congress to order another eight, for a total inventory of 86 aircraft. So far, 55 E-2Ds have been delivered - 10 with an aerial refueling probe - and 23 more have been ordered. It has been refueled by a crewed tanker aircraft and by the new MQ-25 Stingray aerial refueling drone. Aerial refueling enables E-2Ds to fly as long as eight hours. Hawkeyes are so important that they continue to receive upgrades, the most notable of which is an aerial refueling probe. ![]() E-2Ds are among the first aircraft to take off from a carrier at the start of any operation and are usually the last to land.Īn E-2D moves into launch position aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln on July 18, 2019. ![]() ![]() Randy Mahr, the E-2 program manager from 2005 to 2008.Į-2Ds are especially important for defending Navy assets, as they can track fast-moving targets like missiles, jets, and drones. "For 50 years, the E-2 has done something no other carrier-based aircraft can do, and that's take a very capable radar system to 25,000 feet, hundreds of miles forward from the carrier, and manage the airspace," said Rear Adm. The E-2D's modern systems allow the naval flight officers on board to coordinate the operations of multiple air and surface strike groups while being far from the action itself. Other upgrades include an advanced Identification Friend or Foe System, a new mission computer and tactical workstations, and modernized communications and data-link suites. An E-2D approaches the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the Philippine Sea, September 25, 2021.
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