Details of the Fujian aircraft carrier's 4th sea trial, imitating US design, revealed

Details of the Fujian aircraft carrier's fourth sea trial, imitating U.S. design, revealed. Multiple light balls danced in Beijing's night sky, and a large fireball suddenly fell. The third PLA aircraft carrier, the Fujian, recently completed its fourth sea trial, revealing more design features that imitate U.S. aircraft carriers. Let's explore expert interpretations. On September 3, the Fujian carried a J-15D electronic warfare aircraft and a full-size model of the KJ-600 early warning aircraft as it sailed out of the Yangtze River estuary. This suggests that the sea trial focused on carrier-based aircraft takeoff and landing tests, particularly emphasizing the electromagnetic catapult system. According to reports, the Fujian is equipped with three electromagnetic catapult tracks. Analysts believe that this design has certain drawbacks. Xu Xiaohuang, an associate researcher at the Institute of Chinese Political, Military, and Operational Concepts at the Taiwan National Defense and Security Research Institute, commented, Because the Fujian is conventionally powered and uses fuel, its electromagnetic catapults could pose a challenge. Electromagnetic catapults consume a lot of electricity, especially during combat, where high-intensity, peak-time takeoffs and landings might be required, leading to significant fuel consumption. Since May, this marks the Fujian's fourth sea trial, during which its internal design details were revealed for the first time. Observers have noticed that the Fujian uses hard fire doors, similar to those found on American aircraft carriers. In contrast, previous Chinese aircraft carriers primarily used soft fire curtain doors, following Soviet design principles. Xu Xiaohuang explained, The CCP's development of a large aircraft carrier like the Fujian clearly follows the American model. While we cannot definitively say whether this involves plagiarism or theft, the design and configuration strongly reflect U.S. Navy influence. Despite this imitation, analysts argue that the Fujian falls short of American aircraft carrier standards. Mark, a well-known American military blogger, noted, American aircraft carriers have been nuclear-powered for a long time. Although the CCP can build nuclear submarines, the reactors in nuclear submarines are vastly different from those in U.S. aircraft carriers. The nuclear-powered reactors in U.S. military carriers are unique worldwide. Additionally, experts believe that Chinese carriers still face several risks. Mark added, The Fujian has issues with its power system, catapult system, carrier-based aircraft, tactics, and personnel. Its rapid development means that many of its technologies and crew are not yet up to par, which could become a significant risk in the future. A report released by the U.S. Congressional Research Service in January concluded that the Chinese Communist Party's aircraft carriers hold more political significance than military capability. Multiple light balls danced in Beijing's night sky, and a large fireball suddenly fell. A few days later, strange beams of light reappeared in Beijing's night sky, with multiple light balls moving swiftly. Additionally, a large fireball fell from the sky, which some netizens referred to as a bad omen. On the evening of September 20, Beijing time, many Kardash cams in Beijing and Tianjin captured a massive fireball falling in the night sky. Some netizens called it a fire meteor. Videos show that the fireball initially appeared blue, then shifted to orange and red as it reflected off the clouds, eventually disappearing. On Platform X, users left comments such as, Who is going to die? Strange phenomena are happening frequently. The Red Dynasty will collapse. The internal network said, Can you aim at a point? One more time, and it will hit the target. Additionally, on September 21, another video of the Beijing night sky circulated online. The netizen who filmed it remarked, The sky in Beijing last night was really blue and white and very clear. The video shows that the weather was clear, Some people believe they were emitted by a large UFO, while others speculated they might be the aurora. However, some netizens filmed three fixed-position beams of light flickering irregularly, which was clearly not an aurora. Others commented that the lights resembled the flying saucers seen in science fiction movies. Another netizen noted the appearance of a mysterious aperture in the sky over Beijing. This mysterious light covered a very large area, and had no apparent pattern. At one point, multiple light beams suddenly appeared over a large area, rotated, and then quickly disappeared. Prior to this, UFOs were spotted in Tianjin and Kangzhou in Hebei province on consecutive days, September 11th and 12th, with related videos going viral online. Tianjin airport was paralyzed for two days. While Tianjin officials claimed it was caused by drones, many netizens suspected it was a UFO. Henan hospital owes eight months of salaries. China's economy is in dire straits. The Chinese mainland economy continues to decline, with all industries facing difficulties. Recently, reports surfaced online that a hospital in Puyang city, Henan province, has owed wages for eight months, leading medical staff to strike in protest. On August 30th, it was also reported that CICC had implemented wage cuts and layoffs. A video circulating online shows hospital medical staff in Puyang wearing white uniforms and publicly demanding their wages. One of the staff members stated that the hospital had not paid wages for eight months. On August 28th, the hospital involved Puyang Qingfeng First Hospital issued an announcement stating that it is actively preparing funds and plans to pay the performance wages for January 2024, according to a new performance accounting method, before the mid-autumn festival. On August 30th, according to mainland Zhengzheng News, Wang Ping, a doctor at Qingfeng First Hospital, confirmed that the wage arrears and hospital notices circulating online were true. Wang Ping said she had not been paid from January to August this year. To stabilize employees' emotions, 1,001 was paid around August 25th. Wang Ping mentioned that before the collective wage arrears, the hospital had not proposed any solutions and had been consistently behind on payments. She also noted that it was inconvenient to disclose the number of people affected by the wage arrears or the size of the funding gap. Wang Ping further explained that the hospital had previously raised funds from the directors of various departments. The hospital said that funds were not circulating properly, so they raised money from individuals at that time. For example, some directors, or those with high professional titles who had money contributed 100,000 or 200,000 yuan to pay wages with an interest rate slightly higher than that of the bank. At the office of the director of Qingfeng County First Hospital, the operator said, The county has sent an investigation team, but the money has not arrived yet. The money will be paid when it does. Public information shows that Qingfeng First Hospital, formerly known as Qingfeng County People's Hospital, is a Class II Grade A comprehensive hospital and the main medical institution in Qingfeng County with 800 beds. Additionally, on August 30th, a message circulated online that Many people at CICC have received emails about demotions and salary cuts. If they do not sign to accept, the company will arrange follow-up work, which has attracted attention. According to a report by China Business News, this is indeed the case. An insider revealed, The relevant assessment was done a few months ago. This time, employees are required to sign to confirm that they accept the demotion and salary adjustments according to the corresponding job level. If they do not accept the arrangements, they can choose to resign. If they neither resign nor sign, the company will proceed with the demotion and salary cuts. The report states that in May this year, CICC's planned salary cuts and layoffs were expected to reduce salaries by 25% and lay off about one-third of its investment banking business line. In the first half of the year, CICC reduced its staff by 264 employees, both in mainland China and overseas. Public information indicates that CICC, or China International Capital Corporation Limited, is the first investment bank jointly established by China Construction Bank and a foreign company. Economists warn, China's economy is slowly collapsing. 51 of the 74 analysts tracked by Bloomberg estimate that China's economic growth rate in 2024 may be less than 5%, with some economists even warning that China's economy may slowly implode. Over the past two years, the real estate crisis has dragged down all aspects of China's economy, from the job market to consumption and household wealth. The measures taken by the authorities to restore investor confidence have been too slow and too small, resulting in a long-term slump in China's stock market. The CSI 300 Index, which tracks China's onshore stocks, has fallen 4.2% so far in 2024, marking the fourth consecutive year of decline. In contrast, the broader Asian Stock Index has risen by nearly 10%. Furthermore, the impact has spread to broader financial markets, affecting individual investors. According to a report by mainland media China Securities Journal on Thursday, August 29th, nearly half of the 27 closed-end three-year mutual funds launched in 2021 are facing losses of more than 40% near the end of their cycle. Bloomberg reported that alpine macro strategist Wang Yan, who recently returned from China, believes that the 5% economic growth target is almost impossible to achieve. He also warned that China may be at risk of a slow implosion in the future. He noted that Chinese policymakers lack a clear and coherent strategy to address these challenges, and even the piecemeal measures currently promoted to solve demand problems are temporary and hesitant. Global major banks agree China cannot achieve 5% growth. UBS Group lowered its forecast for China's economy on Wednesday, the 28th, stating that it is increasingly unlikely to achieve the goal of 5% economic growth this year. The Swiss bank reduced its forecast for China's GDP growth this year from 4.9% to 4.6%, and its growth in 2025 from 4.6% to 4%. Previously, JP Morgan and Nomura Securities also set China's economic growth forecast for this year below 5%. Bloomberg noted that this reflects a consensus among major banks around the world that China may not be able to achieve its annual growth target, even though the top level of the Chinese Communist Party continues to promote its commitment to achieving economic and social development goals. The downturn in the real estate market has severely affected domestic demand and confidence. We expect weak real estate activity to be a bigger drag on the overall economy than earlier expected, including affecting household consumption, UBS economist Wang Tao wrote in a report on Wednesday. UBS stated that the measures enacted by Beijing since the end of 2022 to revive the real estate market, including lower down payment requirements, lower mortgage rates, and fewer restrictions on home purchases, have been slow to take effect and have had limited impact. They expect China's new real estate starts to bottom out only in mid-2026. In recent years, China's real estate supply and demand fundamentals have changed, with low market confidence, high inventory levels, and slow destocking amid weak household income growth, the UBS report stated. China's banking industry is in a bad state, and many banks are required to tighten their belts. China's economy is in decline, and the once highly regarded banking sector, known for its high welfare and wages, is now facing challenging times. On August 31st, the topic of many banks living a tight life trended on social media, sparking heated discussions. Public data shows that as of the end of the first quarter of 2024, the net interest margin of commercial banks had fallen to a record low of 1.54%. Data from Oriental Fortune Choice reveals that in the first quarter performance reports of 42 A-share listed banks in 2024, approximately 15 banks experienced a year-on-year revenue decline. A corporate business staff member at a joint stock bank mentioned that this year, the salary structure across all positions in his bank has been uniformly adjusted, with some year-end bonuses cancelled and moved to monthly performance wages. An employee at a large bank shared that the bank has become more frugal with office supplies, printing materials only when absolutely necessary, and preferring electronic documents. If printing is required, both sides of the paper are used. Now, fewer meeting materials are printed. We rely on electronic versions whenever possible, said an employee of a city commercial bank. The bank follows the principle of living a tight life in all aspects, requiring neighbouring counties to share vehicles for business trips and training sessions. Another large bank employee stated, we are also tightening our belts from top to bottom. Fuel expenses for the bank's public vehicles have been halted, and external marketing activities are now subject to certain restrictions. Moreover, semi-annual collective welfare expenses and labour protection supplies have also been affected. An employee from a large bank noted that employee benefits at various banks have been reduced to varying degrees. The bank where he works has made noticeable changes, from reducing the summer water supply standards at business outlets, to cutting training costs and shifting to online training to save money. As China's economy continues to decline, more banks are going bankrupt, merging or restructuring, accompanied by layoffs and salary cuts. Data released by the State Administration of Financial Supervision of the Communist Party of China in August this year indicated that at least 50 small and medium-sized banks have been dissolved since the beginning of the year. Except for one city commercial bank, Corla Bank, the rest were rural, small and medium-sized banks. On August 20, China Calian reported that several banks, including Nanjing Bank, Ping'an Bank, Pudong Development Bank and Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank, released their 2024 semi-annual reports. According to Oriental Fortune Choice data, the number of employees at Nanjing Bank, Ping'an Bank, Pudong Development Bank and Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank decreased by 4,116 in the first half of the year.