Construction
of the first Chinese aircraft carrier faced new unanticipated problems;
it turned out that the former Soviet carrier Varyag was not equipped
with arresters, and it is unclear where China could get them. In 2007
news agency Kanwa exclusively reported from St. Petersburg that China
would buy 4 arresters designed by Marine Engineering Research Institute
and made by Proletarsky Zavod plant which produces all Russian arresters
and arresting hooks. Earlier on, China had contacts with this plant
purchasing constituent parts for Project 956E/EM destroyers.
Kanwa reported referring to a source in the plant that the Chinese had
visited it many times and declared intentions to purchase at least 4
arresters (the source used the term "purchase"). The talks
took place in the office of Rosoboronexport; negotiators of Proletarsky
Zavod presented their production, and the Chinese requested for technical
information.
In 2011 the authoritative source told to Kanwa reporter that
the negotiations were facing unexpected problems – Russian defense
industry's authorities had decided not to sell arresters for China.
According to the source, China managed to get arresting hooks from Ukraine
instead of buying them directly from Marine Engineering Research Institute
and Proletarsky Zavod plant; those arresters were suitable for operational
training aircraft JL-9 and "copied" J-15.
What made Russia refuse to sell arresters to China in the very nick
of time? Kanwa repeatedly asked Russian defense and foreign ministries
about China's purchase of Russian aircraft carrier construction technology.
Official reply was the same: "it is prohibited to export strategic
armament systems to China. Aircraft carriers, nuclear-powered submarines,
nuclear weapons production technologies – all that are strategic
arms".
However, Kanwa inquired into the subject and it became apparent that
real cause of the problem is not only "the ban on strategic arms
exports to China" but Russia's discontent with China copying deck-based
fighter Su-33. Take note, Marine Engineering Research Institute delivered
two arresters for Indian aircraft carrier IAC and modernized Admiral
Gorshkov. The institute also took part in construction of naval aviation
training center built on Goa, India.
In 2007 the source told to Kanwa that designing and production of arresters
was quite complicated process and only Russia and the US had appropriate
technology at the moment. "In the past, there used to be four arresters
on an aircraft carrier, but the new Indian carrier is equipped with
only three arresters, which indicates of high reliability of Russian
systems". |
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Representative
of Rosoboronexport A. Plotnikov recently told to Kanwa that "China
really wanted to buy arresters but we did not sell them". This
confirms the assumption that China has not Russian arresters in inventory.
In 2006 director of Marine Engineering Research Institute and Proletarsky
Zavod plant told to Kanwa reporter that China was about to purchase
four arresters and the parties had held several rounds of negotiations.
However, in 2011 he said that "we've received an unexpected instruction
from Moscow to cut off all contacts with Chinese partners. In other
words, we cannot deliver arresters to China as well as other equipment
for their aircraft carrier".
Russian foreign ministry stated later on that "strategic armaments
and technologies will not be sold to China".
All abovementioned facts illustrate why arresters have not been delivered
to Yanliang air training center by Aug 2010 and why they were not mounted
on ex-Varyag carrier by the time of her first sortie. As for Kanwa,
construction of Chinese aircraft carrier may face considerable problems.
According to A. Plotnikov, there are some old arresters remained in
Ukraine, and China could purchase them. However, even if China really
buys them such arresters might be used only as presentation samples.
Ukrainian air training center NITKA is not equipped with large number
of arresters.
Moreover, after buying of Ukrainian arresters and studying their design
China would need some time to develop own analogs.
From: Rusnavy
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