Rob

Thats an bit of a generous generalisation and not very accurate.

But I really doubt that they want to commission the thing. Quite apart from
what I assume is the huge technical challenge, surely this is too early for
China to be planning a serious expeditionary capability.

For the South China Sea, the tankers and Su-27s that Amitabh mentioned (plus
the Tu-16s that he didn't) are a far more practical method of sinking your
enemies.

I would guess that China mostly wants to examine Varyag, to appreciate the
design, just as they seem to have spent some time appreciating the design of
the ex HMAS Melbourne, a British light fleet carrier.

On the other hand, they could certainly buy plans if they wanted them. So
the situation is not at all clear.

Do you really think that some Chinese company bought an incomplete
aircraft carrier to be a floating casino?  Where are they going to put
it?  Who's going to be the clientele?  Except for a growing number of
"wealthy" [1] Chinese in the SEZs, the only people they could allow in
would be foreigners and Party members.  While China gets a lot of
foreign travel, there's not really enough for a gambling industry.
People don't go to China to throw dice:  they go to Morocco or Las
Vegas or someplace like that.
;-)

[1] They can afford a US$8,000 car...

Long Beach would be a great location for a modern entertainment ship.  It would
serve as a complement to the Queen Mary.  The Queen Mary serves as a tranquil,
upscale, scenic recreation site.  Its art deco furnishings, paneled staterooms,
and lavish bars and restauarants hearken to the best of hegemonistic capitalism
(I stayed there once).

The Varyag could serve as an austere, retro statement of the "best" of
communism.  Tourists would be able to spend restful nights in the non-rated
seamen's bunkrooms, promenade the spacious passageways, and find entertainment
in some modified compartments.

The Bosun's Locker and Anchor Windlass rooms  would become the "Lubyanka,"
where the drink specials would be "Harvey Wallbangers" during Happy Hour.  The
engine room could be relabeled the "Gulag," specializing in serving up
"Zombies."  Younger tourists wind their way into the Combat Information Spaces,
with blue lights, plasma displays, a mind-numbing heavy metal beat and thick
opium vapors celebrating the "Cultural Revolution."

For the more active, the wide open hangar deck would be strewn with vintage
military equipment (such as T-72s and BMPs) and obstacles. Game players would
romp around, trying to reach, or defend, a central open area containing the
goal: a large abstract useless object.  With Lazer Tag (tm?) equipment, every
youngster would love this game of "Tienanmen Square!"

The last, and most exciting, stop for every tourist (mandatory) is the one for
which Varyag's ski-jump bow is perfectly suited:  Young and old, rich and poor,
boy and girl (though preferably girl, according to the owners) get to take the
Great Leap Forward.

Book your trip today!

Glenn
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