Map Shows US and China's Aircraft Carriers in Pacific This Week
Three U.S. aircraft carriers were underway in the Pacific Ocean this week, with one beginning a voyage to Japan as it shifts its home port from the West Coast to the Asian nation, joining U.S. forward-deployed military forces there.
Elsewhere, two aircraft carriers from China were operating in the South China Sea at the same time. Another Chinese aircraft carrier, which has yet to enter into service, remained at a shipyard following sea trials last month.
A Japanese vessel currently undergoing conversion into a light aircraft carrier remained on the U.S. West Coast for flight testing with fighter jets.
Newsweek's weekly update maps aircraft carrier movements in the strategic Indo-Pacific region. As of October 18, the locations of at least nine aircraft carriers were publicly available via military disclosures or open-source satellite imagery. The U.S. has the world's largest aircraft carrier fleet with 11 in service. China ranks second with three ships.
U.S. Navy
USS NimitzUSS Carl Vinson, and USS George Washington: Eastern Pacific Ocean
The Nimitz departed from Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego on Monday , according to San Diego Web Cam, which features livestreaming views. It then conducted training in the Third Fleet area of operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
The Carl Vinson was underway in the Third Fleet area of operations in the Eastern Pacific as of Wednesday. It conducted was also conducting training exercises, according to the Navy.
The Navy announced on Thursday that the George Washington, which departed from its North Island home port for routine operations on October 8, has commenced its transit to Yokosuka naval base in Japan for forward deployment. It is expected to arrive in late fall.
Photos published by the Navy prior to the announcement showed the aircraft carrier was underway in the Third Fleet area of operations in the Eastern Pacific Ocean on Tuesday.
USS Theodore RooseveltUSS Ronald Reagan: San Diego, California
The Theodore Roosevelt returned to its North Island home port on Tuesday after conducting operations in the Middle East and the Pacific Ocean. During this nine-month deployment, the aircraft carrier and its strike group conducted more than 9,000 sorties, including 21,000 flight hours, 28 replenishments-at-sea, and transited more than 71,000 nautical miles.
The Ronald Reagan remained in-port at North Island as of Wednesday. It is being prepared for an estimated 17-month maintenance program scheduled for March 2025 at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Bremerton, Washington.
People's Liberation Army Navy
CNS LiaoningCNS Shandong: South China Sea
The Liaoning, China's first operational aircraft carrier, departed from the Philippine Sea and transited toward the South China Sea on Tuesday. Its deployment in waters southeast of Taiwan and northeast of the Philippines was part of Joint Sword-2024B , a large-scale Chinese military exercise held in waters and airspace around Taiwan on Monday.
Satellite imagery showed the Shandong, China's second operational aircraft carrier, was no longer at Sanya naval base on China's southern island of Hainan as of Wednesday. The Shandong and Liaoning were previously spotted together for the first time pier-side at the base.
Duan Dang, a Vietnam-based security analyst who tracks military activities in China, said this would appear to be the first instance of both Chinese aircraft carriers operating at the same time in the contested South China Sea, where China has territorial disputes with the Philippines and a number of other nations.
CNS Fujian: Shanghai
The Fujian, China's newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, remained pier-side at Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard as of Monday, according to satellite imagery reviewed by Newsweek. The yet-to-be-commissioned warship departed from Shanghai on September 3 for sea trials and returned on September 21.
Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
JS Kaga: San Diego, California
The Japanese helicopter-carrying destroyer, which is currently undergoing conversion into a light aircraft carrier, remained in San Diego. It will conduct flight tests with F-35B fighter jets, including short-takeoff and vertical landing.
