China has launched its first aircraft carrier, in a sign of the country’s burgeoning naval power.

　　中國第一艘航母首次出海試航，表明中國海軍力量不斷增強。

　　The Ministry of Defense said that the Varyag, which the People’s Liberation Army purchased as an unfinished hull from the Ukraine in 1998, started its first sea trial in the early hours of Wednesday.

　　中國國防部表示，“瓦良格”號航母周三凌晨開始了首次出海航行試驗。中國人民解放軍(PLA)于1998年從烏克蘭購買了這艘航母，當時船體尚未完工。

　　While the long-awaited maiden voyage triggered an outpouring of joy among patriotic Chinese, the PLA Navy could struggle for years to master the skills needed to operate the massive ship.

　　盡管這次期待已久的處女航令中國愛國民眾歡欣鼓舞，但中國海軍可能需要幾年時間才能掌握操控這艘大船所需的技能。

　　“China has resolved some of the most fundamental physical issues involved in launching and landing aircraft from a small moving airfield, but the process remains immensely difficult,” Andrew Erickson, a China expert at the US Naval War College, wrote in a note on Wednesday.

　　“中國已經(jīng)解決了飛機在小型移動機場起降所涉及的一些最為基本的物理學問題，但整個過程仍然難度極大，”美國海軍戰(zhàn)爭學院(US Naval War College)中國專家安德魯?埃里克森(Andrew Erickson)在周三的一份簡報中表示。

　　Rear Admiral Yin Zhuo, a military scholar, said on state television that it could take up to four more years to train pilots for carrier operations.

　　中國軍事學者、海軍少將尹卓在國家電視臺表示，還要經(jīng)過4年的培訓，飛行員才能掌握航母作戰(zhàn)技能。

　　Maritime authorities declared a zone near Dalian, a northeastern port, off-limits to all other ships and boats from August 10 to August 14. The trial will test the carrier’s engines and maneuverability, with exercises involving fighter aircraft not expected to take place for months.

　　海事部門宣布，8月10日至8月14日期間，東北大連港附近的一片特定海域禁止其它各類船只駛?cè)?。此次航行試驗將檢驗“瓦良格”號航母的發(fā)動機和可操作性，以及有戰(zhàn)斗機參與的演練——原先外界預測這項演練還需要幾個月時間才會進行。

　　Military observers believe it would make most sense for the PLA Navy to station an aircraft carrier in either southern Guangdong or Hainan province, closer to both Taiwan and the South China Sea, both of which China claims sovereignty over. While relations between China and Taiwan have improved over recent years, the self-ruled island yesterday displayed a “carrier killer” missile.

　　軍事觀察家認為，人民解放軍海軍在中國南部靠近臺灣和中國南海的廣東省或海南省部署一艘航母最有意義。中國對臺灣和中國南海均宣稱擁有主權(quán)。盡管近年來中國大陸和臺灣之間的關(guān)系有所改善，但實行自治的臺灣昨天向外界展示了一種有“航母殺手”之稱的導彈。

　　The South China Sea is claimed in its entirety by Beijing, and in parts by Taiwan and China’s southeast Asian neighbours.

　　中國宣稱對中國南海擁有全部主權(quán)，而臺灣和中國的東南亞鄰國宣稱對該地區(qū)擁有部分主權(quán)。

　　But Chinese and foreign military experts said they expected the Varyag to remain in Dalian for the time being. “It will probably be put under the Dalian Naval Academy rather than become a command of its own,” said a foreign military official in Beijing.

　　但是，國內(nèi)外的軍事專家都表示，預計“瓦良格”號航母暫時仍將停留在大連。一位駐北京的外國軍官表示，“這艘航母很可能被劃歸海軍大連艦艇學院的編制，而不是成為一個獨立艦隊。”