China unveiled its largest and most advanced amphibious assault ship on Friday in Shanghai, naming it after the southwestern province of Sichuan.

With a hull code of 51, the CNS Sichuan is the first in the Type 076 class and is being built at Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co Ltd, a Shanghai-based subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corp, the nation's dominant naval hardware contractor.

According to the People's Liberation Army Navy, the ship will displace more than 40,000 metric tons of water and will carry fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and amphibious landing craft.

It has a two-island superstructure configuration, a design that has never been used on any other Chinese ships and is apparently aimed to better facilitate aviation operations, a full-length flight deck, and an electromagnetic launch system, or electromagnetic catapult, which will be used to launch fixed-wing aircraft, the PLA Navy said in a news release.

After a brief launch ceremony on Friday morning at Hudong-Zhonghua, water began to be pumped into a dry dock in which the ship's hull was built.

Participants in the ceremony — leaders from the Navy and the Sichuan provincial government, executives of China State Shipbuilding Corp, and some of the vessel's designers and construction workers — applauded as they watched the launch process.

In shipbuilding terminology, the launch refers to the process during which a nearly finished ship is moved into the water. It is one of the most important stages in a ship's construction because once a ship is launched, it means that its major structures have been readied and the major work of the entire construction project has been completed.

The Navy added that in the next phase, engineers will start outfitting and fine-tuning the vessel's equipment and then conduct mooring tests and sea trials.

According to a senior researcher in China's shipbuilding industry who wished not to be identified, the twin island superstructures, full-length flight deck and electromagnetic catapult will give the Type 076 unique advantages.

"The use of the twin-island superstructure configuration is intended to optimize the layout of the ship's propulsion system, and will consequently create more usable space on it," he explained.

The large flight deck, together with the vessel's big internal hanger, will allow for carrying a great number of troops and hardware, enabling the Type 076 to conduct various kinds of tasks, according to the researcher.

Furthermore, he noted that the Type 076 is the second naval ship class in China to be equipped with an electromagnetic catapult, following the CNS Fujian, China's third and largest aircraft carrier.

"The electromagnetic catapult will, like the Navy said in its release, be used to launch fixed-wing planes. It is highly likely that the ship will carry large combat drones and act like a 'lightweight aircraft carrier'," he said.

The CNS Fujian was also constructed in Shanghai, at the Jiangnan Shipyard. It has completed five sea trials and is expected to be commissioned in the near future.

Currently, the PLA operates three Type 075 amphibious assault ships, which were named after Hainan province, the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and Anhui province.

All of the Type 075s were built at Hudong-Zhonghua. The model has a full displacement of nearly 40,000 tons and can carry several helicopters and landing craft, as well as dozens of tanks and armored vehicles.

zhaolei@chinadaily.com.cn