USS NIMITZ, South China Sea –The first crossing of the Pacific by the USS Nimitz in 1987 probably went unnoticed. The world’s oldest serving aircraft carrier was then a strapping teenager; China was just beginning to stir. The Asian giant was a decade deep into its market reforms, immersed in building up its private sector and climbing up the GDP ranks. Read more at straitstimes.com.
–The first crossing of the Pacific by the USS Nimitz in 1987 probably went unnoticed. The world’s oldest serving aircraft carrier was then a strapping teenager; China was just beginning to stir. The Asian giant was a decade deep into its market reforms, immersed in building up its private sector and climbing up the GDP ranks.Back in the Pacific on another deployment last month, the entry of the grand old lady – 54 now – to the South China Sea made a predictable splash.
“We’re always sailing together. It’s international waters, it’s pretty routine. I have not had anything that was provocative or any unsafe interactions,” he told The Sunday Times and a small group of other media outlets in an interview.The region fears that this robustness will one day be tested in its waters.
The US, which pioneered the world’s first aeroplane, was experimenting with flying planes off ships as early as in 1910 and pressed its first aircraft carrier into service in 1922. It provided unprecedented war fighting capability and means of power projection.China, which now owns the world’s largest naval fleet, is said to be wanting at least five carriers by the time it marks the centenary of the PLA Navy in 2027. Counting the Nimitz, there are 11 at American command.
The 1990s-era aircraft, with seats on each side across a narrow aisle, is mainly used to transport cargo, mail and passengers between carriers and shore bases. It offered hard seats facing the back. We sat strapped with life vests and heavy “cranials” – hard helmets, large goggles and clunky earphones. No conversation was possible – the propellers were deafening. There were no windows to afford a view or provide moorings.
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