Update on U.S. and Chinese Carrier and Amphibious Deployments in the Western Pacific
Observations:
(1) Based on open-source reporting, this marks the first observed instance of two Chinese aircraft carriers operating concurrently beyond the first island chain.
(2) Elements of the Shandong carrier strike group detached from the main formation, following a pattern previously observed with the Liaoning group. This activity likely reflects red-versus-blue force-on-force training conducted in the vicinity of the second island chain.
(3) This also marks the first deployment in 2025 of four U.S. aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships to the Western Pacific. The last comparable deployment occurred in December 2024, when Reuters reported the presence of approximately 90 Chinese vessels operating near the first island chain.
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K. Tristan Tang
@KTristanTang
Update on PLA Navy Operations in the Western Pacific
This could be the closest publicly known instance to Midway and Hawaii of a Chinese aircraft carrier group conducting adversarial drills.
Observations:
(1) On June 7, the PLA Navy’s Liaoning carrier group was operating x.com/KTristanTang/s…
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