CHINA has built an armada of fake US warships on a secret military base on a sprawling range in the desert presumably to use as target practice.
Satellite pictures appear to show mockups of the warships including the US Navy‘s newest supercarrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford in the Taklamakan Desert.
Planet LabsSatellite images appear to show a mockup of the USS Gerald R. Ford[/caption]
Planet LabsA satellite image appears to show a US Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the Taklamakan Desert[/caption]
Planet LabsAn outline of the target was visible on July 2023[/caption]
The target, located in northwestern China emphasises the focus of the People’s Liberation Army on testing and training its ability to target American warships.
The new satellite images were taken on January 1 by Planet Labs in China‘s northwestern Xinjiang province.
They show the black-coloured bottle-shaped silhouette in the sand roughly 1,085 feet long.
The target appeared to match perfectly the shape, size, and other characteristics of the USS Gerald R. Ford.
The design and the four catapults island are all correct while the shape is over 1,000 feet long.
There is also a structure in the same position as Ford‘s island, while the four catapult tracks on the “deck” match the positions of those on the real ship.
Several masts can be seen dotted around the target, often used as radar reflectors which together can be used to simulate the real ship’s radar signature.
This would mean a “phantom” carrier would be created in the desert without the need to construct an extensive version.
An outline of the model was present before the detailed version emerged, satellite images from July suggest.
According to the War Zone, work on the model started in November.
There were two smaller carrier mockups that were later removed when work on the full-size version began.
The world’s largest warship, the £10billion USS Gerald Ford is capable of carrying up to 90 aircraft and launching 220 airstrikes a day.
It boasts a five-acre flight deck and can transport 4,660 personnel and 75 aircraft.
Mockups of other types of ships as well as two Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are also in the desert.
Other smaller aircraft carriers have been erected and then removed at the site on several occasions since 2021.
China‘s new Ford model is just under 2.8 miles near another full-scale carrier target which matches the US one but wasn’t as detailed.
Fake ships have been present in the desert for years, believed to be used for missile-strike training.
GettyThe USS Gerald R. Ford seen anchored in Italy in the Gulf of Trieste[/caption]