China’s navy begins national search for trainee top-gun pilots
Recruiters are looking for candidates to fly the J-15 fighter jets for its new fleet of aircraft carriers
The Chinese navy has begun a nationwide scouting programme to find trainee pilots as the country looks to increase the combat capacity of its growing fleet of aircraft carriers.
Starting this week, four groups of scouts are travelling through 23 provinces in search of suitable high school seniors graduating next year to join the navy and train as pilots at the Naval Aviation University, state media reported.
One of the main areas this year’s recruitment programme will focus on is the carrier-based J-15 jets to meet the coming needs of the navy, Xinhua reported.
“Some of the recruits will receive top and systematic training as future pilots of the shipboard aircraft,” an officer from the scouting team told Xinhua.
This will be the first time the Chinese navy has directly recruited and trained pilots for the shipboard fighters, the J-15 “Fighter Sharks”. The country’s second aircraft carrier is undergoing sea trials and expected to enter service next year, posing an urgent need for pilots.