Map Shows US and Chinese Aircraft Carriers in Pacific This Week


A U.S. aircraft carrier visited Thailand this week, while a French carrier reached the edge of the Western Pacific Ocean as it stopped in Indonesia after a multinational war game.

Meanwhile, the Chinese military did not deploy any of its aircraft carriers, two of them remaining pierside at bases, while another underwent maintenance inside a dry dock.

visualization

Newsweek‘s weekly update maps aircraft carrier movements in the Indo-Pacific region. As of January 31, the locations of 12 vessels were publicly available via military disclosures, as well as open-source imagery captured by satellites or ship-spotters. The U.S. military has the world’s largest “flattop” fleet with 11 in service. China ranks second with three.

U.S. Navy

USS Carl Vinson: Laem Chabang, Thailand

The Carl Vinson arrived at Laem Chabang in Thailand on Monday for a scheduled visit. It departed from the port on Friday, photos released by the U.S. Navy showed.

Laem Chabang is located on the Gulf of Thailand, part of the South China Sea. The Carl Vinson held an exercise with Philippine forces in the South China Sea earlier this month.

U.S. Aircraft Carrier Visits Thailand
The USS Carl Vinson arrives at Laem Chabang in Thailand for a scheduled visit on January 27, 2025.

Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Kenneth Ostas/U.S. Navy

USS George Washington: Yokosuka, Japan

The George Washington remained pierside at Yokosuka naval base, its home port in the Greater Tokyo Area, as of Friday, according to a local government website that tracks port visits by American nuclear-powered warships.

USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS Abraham Lincoln: San Diego, California

The Abraham Lincoln and the Theodore Roosevelt remained at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California, as of Wednesday, according to satellite imagery.

US Carriers Roosevelt, Lincoln Pictured In Washington
This photograph captured on January 29, 2025, by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellites shows the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Theodore Roosevelt at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California.

Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem

USS Nimitz: Eastern Pacific Ocean

The Nimitz conducted what the U.S. Navy called “routine training operations” on Thursday in the Third Fleet’s area of operations, which covers the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

A U.S. Pacific Fleet spokesperson told Newsweek that the fiscal year 2024 budget request extended the service life of the Nimitz by 13 months, from April 2025 to May 2026. The aircraft carrier was commissioned in 1975 and has a life cycle of approximately 50 years.

U.S. Aircraft Carrier Transits Eastern Pacific Ocean
Sailors direct aircraft on the flight deck of the USS Nimitz while underway in the Eastern Pacific Ocean on January 30, 2025.

Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Hannah Kantner/U.S. Navy

USS Ronald Reagan: Bremerton, Washington

Satellite imagery captured on Wednesday showed the Ronald Reagan docked at Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Washington.

US Carrier Ronald Reagan Pictured In Washington
This photograph captured on January 29, 2025, by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellites shows the USS Ronald Reagan docked at Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Washington.

Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem

People’s Liberation Army Navy

CNS Liaoning: Qingdao, Shandong

No clear satellite image of Qingdao in China’s eastern Shandong province is available after January 25. It is the home port of the Liaoning, China’s first operational aircraft carrier.

CNS Shandong: Sanya, Hainan

The Shandong, which is the second operational Chinese aircraft carrier, was spotted at its home port in Sanya in China’s southern Hainan province on Tuesday.

China's Shandong Carrier Seen At Home Port
This photograph captured on January 28, 2025, by the United States Landsat 8 and 9 satellites shows the Chinese navy aircraft carrier CNS Shandong at its home port in Sanya in China’s southern Hainan province.

Sentinel Hub

CNS Fujian: Shanghai

The Fujian, China’s most advanced but yet-to-be-commissioned aircraft carrier, was inside a dry dock at Shanghai’s Jiangnan Shipyard in eastern China on Wednesday, a satellite photograph showed.

China's Fujian Carrier Seen In Dry Dock
This photograph captured on January 29, 2025, by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2 satellites shows the Chinese navy aircraft carrier CNS Fujian inside a dry dock at Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai in eastern China.

Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force

JS Kaga: Kure, Japan

The Kaga, which is a helicopter destroyer undergoing conversion into an aircraft carrier, was spotted in Kure in Japan’s Hiroshima Prefecture on Friday, according to open-source data provided by the ship-tracking site MarineTraffic.

JS Izumo: Yokohama, Japan

Japanese media said the Izumo, which is the Kaga‘s sister ship, will remain at a shipyard in Yokohama, southwest of Tokyo, for conversion into an aircraft carrier until 2027.

French Navy

FS Charles de Gaulle: Lombok, Indonesia

The Charles de Gaulle docked at a port on the Indonesian island of Lombok on Tuesday. It is expected to transit toward the Western Pacific Ocean after the visit, becoming France‘s first aircraft carrier to be sent to the Pacific since 1968.

French Aircraft Carrier Visits Indonesia
The French nuclear-powered aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle is seen docked on the island of Lombok in Indonesia on January 31, 2025.

SONNY TUMBELAKA/AFP via Getty Images



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