China's New Aircraft Carrier Concept Would Go Somewhere No Navy Ship Has Before

The current paradigm of military strength for most of the world's major powers relies on a combination of land, sea, and air defense. Air defense systems are particularly invaluable because they can detect incoming attacks from just about anywhere on Earth. But, hypothetically speaking, what if an attack were to come from outside Earth? China is exploring that very scenario with the Luanniao, a conceptual aircraft carrier that would patrol the seas of space.

The Chinese government is currently conceptualizing a new hybrid air and space-based defense system codenamed Nantianmen. If implemented as planned, this system would allow China to monitor targets and deliver attacks not just in the sky, but from up in the planet's orbit, well above the eyes and reach of terrestrial air defense systems. The linchpin of this system, however, is the titanic Luanniao aircraft carrier, a space-bound vessel that looks like something out of "Star Wars." Whether or not such a craft could realistically exist is debatable, but if Chinese state media is to be believed, the Luanniao could be operational as early as 2040.

Based on the concepts released by Chinese state media, the Luanniao would be a gargantuan spacecraft-aircraft hybrid carrier weighing 120,000 tons (264,554,715 pounds) and measuring in at 242 by 684 meters (approximately 794 by 2,244 feet). For reference, that's even larger and heavier than the USS Gerald R. Ford, the largest aircraft carrier currently in service across the globe, which is capable of traveling all the way to the Middle East in less than 10 days.

The Luanniao's job would be to cruise around the Earth's orbit, toting a squadron of conceptual unmanned fighter jets, the Xuannu. Upon receiving command from Earth, the Luanniao would deploy its Xuannu squadron to take on targets both in orbit and in the higher atmosphere, with each stealth fighter equipped with hypersonic missiles. Since both the Luanniao and its fighters would be in orbit, they would be immune to any attacks from terrestrial air defense systems; they'd be outside the range of any surface-to-air missiles, even highly maneuverable ones like Japan's New SSM.

Both the Luanniao and the wider Nantianmen project remain in conceptual stages. Aeronautics experts have their doubts as to whether or not a 120,000-ton vehicle could even be assembled, let alone deployed in space. It would likely cost more than even the most expensive space missions to date, and by current scientific standards, it's simply not possible to make. However, as German diplomat and space analyst Heinrich Kreft pointed out in a statement (via DW), "Many things that were science fiction 20 or 30 years ago are real today." He acknowledged the project is currently unfeasible in today's landscape, but given the trend of science and technology making monumental leaps in the last few decades, China's multi-decade timeframe may be more plausible than we think.