China is actively building a runway on Antelope Reef, also known as Lingyang Reef, in the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea. Analysts believe construction could be completed by mid-2027, with the first aircraft landing possible around the same period, Taipei Times reports.
Satellite images reviewed by Reuters show surface leveling, stockpiles of gravel and concrete, and cranes working to compact the soil. Images taken by commercial satellite imaging operator Vantor on Friday of the previous week also show a barge carrying gravel heading toward a newly built pier.
Military attachés and security analysts believe the site could become one of China’s most important offshore bases in the region. At the same time, analyst Ben Lewis, founder of the open-data platform PLATracker, said he has not yet observed signs of construction of ammunition and fuel storage facilities required for a base of this scale.
Lewis compared the pace of work with the construction of a three-kilometer runway on Fiery Cross Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands in 2015. In his assessment, the runway surface on Antelope Reef could be completed in the first half of 2027, while the first landing could take place by mid-year or earlier.
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China has not yet acknowledged the construction of a new military base. Chinese state media have said the facility on Antelope Reef will be used for civilian purposes, including meteorological observations and maritime and scientific research. Taiwan and Vietnam also claim the Paracel Islands.
Analysts believe the future base could expand China’s ability to deploy ships and military aircraft in the northern part of the South China Sea and cover approaches to Hainan Island. China stations nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarines there.
Reuters reported at the end of August on new structures on a smaller island near Antelope Reef. Analysts have not yet determined the purpose of the three-pronged structure on Yagong Island.
Source: UA
