China facing shortage of 200 qualified fighter jet pilots for its 130 ship-borne aircraft: Report

China, which recently launched its third aircraft carrier Fujian, is struggling to find qualified ship-borne fighter jet pilots for its navy, South China Morning Post reported quoting experts.

The crisis was highlighted in an article published in Ordnance Industry Science Technology, a Chinese military magazine.

In the article, it was argued that a lack of a fighter trainer specifically designed for carrier-based operations has hindered the progress of the People’s Liberation Army Navy, despite speeding up the pilot training programmes in the past decade.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

“With Fujian, China’s third and most advanced aircraft carrier, having started sea trials last week, the PLA needed at least 200 qualified carrier-based fighter jet pilots to operate 130 ship-borne aircraft,” Beijing-based naval expert Li Jie said in the article.

China commissioned its first indigenous aircraft carrier, thenew-generation Fujian (Type 003), in June this year. This is its first aircraft carrier that is equipped with electromagnetic catapults – technology only the US has so far on its USS Gerald R Ford.

While China’s first two carriers featured ski-jump designs, the new aircraft carrier’s aircraft launch and recovery system made it difficult to find a pilot well-suited to the new mechanism.

“It’s full of challenges, as aircraft design and pilot training are among the world’s most difficult and complicated core technology – which no one will share with you,” Li said.

The problem stems from the fact that PLA navy pilots use the Chinese-made JL-9G, a single-engine twin-seat aircraft as a carrier-trainer variant.

However, it cannot be used to simulate emergency landings on a flight deck because of flaws such as being too light and too slow, the report published in the magazine said.

Those flaws have seen it confined to land-based simulated carrier training.

“In the past few decades, the US military was using the T-45 Goshawk carrier-qualified trainer to train its pilot cadets,” it said.

“Now the Americans have developed a more advanced variant, the T-7A Red Hawk, which is equipped with a more powerful General Electric F404 after burning turbofan engine that will make ship-borne fighter pilot training more efficient.”

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE: