The role of aircraft carriers is to provide air superiority away from land airports. In other words, it is an ocean-going combat weapon and an offensive weapon.

The role of aircraft carriers can be replaced within the scope of land airports, which is why China has not built aircraft carriers for so many years. Because China's naval strategy is offshore defense, it's really not important to defend its own offshore without considering the attack.

However, in recent years, the South China Sea issue has become increasingly serious, and many places in the South China Sea are outside the range of fighter planes at land airports. If there is no aircraft carrier, it will lose its ability to intercept fighters in the South China Sea, and it will also lose its actual control over the South China Sea. So now China still needs an aircraft carrier.