BEIJING — Chinese navy pilots aboard the country’s sole operating aircraft carrier have completed their first nighttime takeoffs and landings, state media reported Friday. The missions were hailed by state media as a major step forward in the combat ability of the Liaoning, which was bought as a mostly empty hull from Ukraine and commissioned in 2012 along with its flight wing. Nighttime missions on aircraft carriers are considered far more difficult and dangerous than those in the daytime. China said this month that its second carrier, the first built entirely in China, had completed five days of sea trials. Beijing says aircraft carriers are needed to protect its coastline and trade routes, although they are also seen as backing up Beijing’s claims to self-governing Taiwan and virtually the entire South China Sea.

Source: National Post May 25, 2018 10:52 UTC