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

　　中国第一艘航母首次出海试航，表明中国海军力量不断增强。

　　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.

　　中国国防部表示，“瓦良格”号航母周三凌晨开始了首次出海航行试验。中国人民解放军(PLA)于1998年从乌克兰购买了这艘航母，当时船体尚未完工。

　　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.

　　尽管这次期待已久的处女航令中国爱国民众欢欣鼓舞，但中国海军可能需要几年时间才能掌握操控这艘大船所需的技能。

　　“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.

　　“中国已经解决了飞机在小型移动机场起降所涉及的一些最为基本的物理学问题，但整个过程仍然难度极大，”美国海军战争学院(US Naval War College)中国专家安德鲁?埃里克森(Andrew Erickson)在周三的一份简报中表示。

　　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.

　　中国军事学者、海军少将尹卓在国家电视台表示，还要经过4年的培训，飞行员才能掌握航母作战技能。

　　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.

　　海事部门宣布，8月10日至8月14日期间，东北大连港附近的一片特定海域禁止其它各类船只驶入。此次航行试验将检验“瓦良格”号航母的发动机和可操作性，以及有战斗机参与的演练——原先外界预测这项演练还需要几个月时间才会进行。

　　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.

　　军事观察家认为，人民解放军海军在中国南部靠近台湾和中国南海的广东省或海南省部署一艘航母最有意义。中国对台湾和中国南海均宣称拥有主权。尽管近年来中国大陆和台湾之间的关系有所改善，但实行自治的台湾昨天向外界展示了一种有“航母杀手”之称的导弹。

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

　　中国宣称对中国南海拥有全部主权，而台湾和中国的东南亚邻国宣称对该地区拥有部分主权。

　　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，国内外的军事专家都表示，预计“瓦良格”号航母暂时仍将停留在大连。一位驻北京的外国军官表示，“这艘航母很可能被划归海军大连舰艇学院的编制，而不是成为一个独立舰队。”