China’s newest aircraft carrier may only be able to conduct air operations at about 60% the rate of a 50-year-old US Navy carrier, two former US carrier officers say, a substantial combat limitation for a vessel meant to revolutionize Beijing’s fleet.

New video clips show three military aircraft, including a J-35 stealth fighter, taking off via electromagnetic catapult from the Fujian.

Chinese military aircraft conducted electromagnetic catapult-assisted takeoffs and arrested landings aboard the aircraft carrier CNS Fujian.

Navy helicopter and fighter jet from USS Nimitz crash in South China Sea during routine operations. All five crew members successfully rescued and stable.

US President Donald Trump, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Tokyo on Monday, said the incidents could have been caused by "bad fuel".View on euronews

The Pentagon is still building up its naval forces in waters close to Venezuela, which has prompted officials in Caracas to decry recent joint exercises between the U.S. and troops from nearby Trinidad and Tobago, Reuters reported Sunday.

As tensions between Beijing and Washington continue to mount, the Trump administration has dispatched two of the Navy’s aircraft carriers near China. Both the Nimitz and George Washington Carrier Strike Groups (CSG) are currently operating in the Western Pacific.