BEIJING — An echelon of aircraft carrier-borne fighter jets flew over the Tian'anmen Square in central Beijing on Oct 1 during a grand military parade celebrating the 70th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China.
The echelon consisted of five J-15 fighter jets, China's domestically-produced first-generation multi-purpose fixed-wing fighter jet and the core strike force of China's carrier formation.
The J-15 planes have successfully accomplished takeoff and landing tasks at night on the Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier, showing that all the technical difficulties regarding carrier-based landing had been overcome, Zhang Ye, an officer with the People's Liberation Army Navy, told Xinhua.
China has unveiled two aircraft carriers. The Liaoning was commissioned in September 2012, and the second has conducted successful sea trials.