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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: goldworldnet who wrote (154157)	6/19/2001 10:21:48 AM
From: goldworldnet	Respond to of 769670

Chinese plot strange new course for Soviet aircraft carrier <<This is the story my buddy told me about. He claimed this carrier had now made it into the Chinese Navy. Apparently it did but they have had subsequent problems with the vessel. -josh>> February 2, 1999 Web posted at: 10:35 p.m. EST (0335 GMT) GUANGZHOU, China (CNN) -- As a giant, intimidating member of the powerful Soviet navy, the aircraft carrier Minsk was once a formidable foe. Capable of carrying 12 fighter planes, 18 helicopters and more than 1,000 crewmen, the Minsk could project Soviet military power across the globe. Today, the decommissioned and rusting 40,000-ton (36,200-metric-ton) ship sits at anchor in southern China, waiting to be refitted for a new mission. If all goes as planned, the Minsk's decks will soon launch high-tech aerial combat campaigns, ground troop invasions, perhaps a fight to the death between martial arts experts -- even though the ship has no engines, no jet fighters and no weapons of any kind. If any missions fail, crew members can simply insert another coin or go off to sing in the bar. The future of this warship, as seen by its new Chinese owner, is that of a floating karaoke palace, complete with video-game parlors and a hotel. The man behind the venture, who would identify himself only as "Mr. Tang," is part of a Shenzhen-registered company with experience in the video game industry. After reportedly paying $4.3 million for the stripped carrier, he says he hopes to open the unusual resort sometime this spring. The idea of a karaoke carrier has intrigued locals. "If we want to sing karaoke, of course there are so many places we can go. But if the karaoke is on an aircraft carrier, that definitely will add some special atmosphere," said one shipyard worker. The mere presence of an aircraft carrier in China, functional or not, inspires many Chinese who dream of seeing such massive ships joining the ranks of their own navy. The Chinese military does not have any aircraft carriers of any kind, though intelligence analysts believe the Chinese plan to build them, perhaps by the year 2015. europe.cnn.com * * *