China is embarking on the largest aircraft carrier buildup in the Pacific since World War II, with ambitions of adding six carriers to its fleet by 2035, according to a Pentagon report released Tuesday.

The report to Congress, an annual assessment of China's military and security developments, said the People's Liberation Army Navy, or PLAN, aims to expand its aircraft carrier force to nine vessels by 2035. That would triple China's ability to deploy carrier strike groups within the next decade.

The report followed a high-profile demonstration of Beijing's expanding naval power. China's newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, the CNS Fujian, sailed through the Taiwan Strait last week. The Pentagon described the carrier's commissioning and sea trials as a "key modernization development."

The Fujian is China's third aircraft carrier and its most capable to date. It features a flat-deck design and electromagnetic catapults for launching aircraft, making it significantly more advanced than China's first two carriers, the Russian-designed Liaoning and Shandong, according to The Japan Times.

"This is the PLAN's first indigenously designed aircraft carrier," the Pentagon report stated. "It is larger than the PLAN's previous two aircraft carriers and is its first flat-deck carrier.

"The PLAN likely intends for Fujian's future airwing to include the J-35 stealth fighter, J-15T fighter jet, J-15D electronic warfare aircraft, Z-20 helicopter, KJ-600 early warning aircraft, and various UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles]."

The Liaoning and Shandong recently returned to their home ports after deployments earlier this month. Both carriers operated extensively in 2025, including simultaneous deployments with their respective carrier strike groups near Japan's southwest region in June.

With more than 370 vessels, China now fields the world's largest navy by hull count. Its aircraft carrier force, however, remains far smaller than that of the United States, which operates 11.

China's fourth carrier, known as the Type 004, is believed to be under construction at a shipyard in Dalian, Liaoning province, the South China Morning Post reported in October. It is expected to be China's first nuclear-powered carrier.

Congress mandates the U.S. Navy maintain at least 11 aircraft carriers, a requirement upheld through its Nimitz-class fleet and the newer Ford-class carriers.

The U.S. maintains a forward-deployed carrier in Japan and regularly deploys additional carriers to the Indo-Pacific. Its carrier force is backed by decades of global operational experience that China's young carrier fleet has yet to match.

Two Ford-class carriers are currently under construction in Newport News, Virginia. Under the Navy's shipbuilding plan covering fiscal years 2025 to 2054, the U.S. carrier fleet would reach a maximum of 12 vessels for only three years during the 30-year period.

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