During the Military Victory Day Parade, held on Wednesday (3) to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese people’s resistance war against Japanese aggression and in World War II, China first presented the KJ-600 embarked early alert plane.
The model participated in the air training next to the embarked hunting J-15Tmarking a strategic step for naval operations in the country.
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According to experts cited by the state newspaper Global Times, the entry into service of the KJ-600 represents the “final piece of the puzzle” for the full operational capacity of the Chinese aircraft carrier groups, reinforcing both the offensive and defensive functions.
Military analyst Zhang Xuefeng stressed that the aircraft can be described as a “force multiplier” for the air operations embarked. He explained that, until now, the early detection was carried out mainly by destroyers, frigates and helicopters. However, terrestrial and naval radars face limitations to identify low altitude objectives due to the curvature of the Earth.
“The main function of early wing alert aircraft is to detect those objectives that fly at a very low height,” said Zhang. He stressed that, unlike helicopters, which have smaller radars and limited autonomy, the KJ-600 can transport more robust systems, with greater scope and operating time.
In addition to strengthening the defense, the aircraft also expands the offensive potential of the aircraft carriers. According to Zhang, the KJ-600 can support attack missions against land and maritime objectives, operating in regions outside the radar coverage on land. “These airplanes allow airborne control operations to be carried out and significantly increase the attack capacity of the aircraft carrier groups,” he said.
With the debut of the KJ-600, China consolidates a new level in its naval aviation, aligning with practices already used by military powers that use aircraft carriers as a strategic axis of power projection.
Source and images: Globaltimes | CCTV. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
