The Shandong, China’s first aircraft carrier designed and built entirely within the country, arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday as part of a campaign to boost patriotic sentiment in the city, just days after the 28th anniversary of its handover from British to Chinese rule.
Escorted by two destroyers and a frigate, the warship sailed into the harbor early in the morning, according to state media reports. The vessels will remain docked over the weekend and will be open to the public. Public interest was swift and intense: all 10,000 tickets available for tours were quickly claimed, with 2,000 reserved specifically for the Shandong.
The carrier’s visit comes amid Beijing’s increasing push to promote nationalism in Hong Kong, particularly since the suppression of the city’s 2019 pro-democracy protests. A sweeping national security law introduced shortly after led to the arrest of numerous opposition figures and a tightening of political freedoms.
While Hong Kong retains a degree of semi-autonomy and enjoys more civil liberties than most other Chinese cities, military and foreign affairs remain firmly under Beijing’s control. The city hosts Chinese military garrisons, including land, naval, and air forces.
The Shandong, which can carry up to 24 J-15 fighter jets and has a full-load displacement of 70,000 tons, plays a central role in China’s expanding naval capabilities. In April, it took part in joint naval and air drills east of Taiwan, a self-governed island claimed by Beijing. A month later, it joined the Liaoning, China’s first carrier, in high-profile exercises in the Pacific beyond the so-called “first island chain”—a display of growing assertiveness.
The Liaoning, rebuilt from a Soviet-era hull purchased from Ukraine, previously visited Hong Kong in 2017. Meanwhile, China is currently sea-testing its third carrier, the Fujian, which features a flat-deck design rather than the ski-jump ramps used on the earlier two. A fourth carrier is already under construction.