There are sailors from many ethnic minorities and a lot of women serving on CNS Liaoning, the first aircraft carrier of the People's Liberation Army Navy, said an officer from the Liaoning.

Lieutenant Commander Zhu Yuemeng, a political instructor on the Liaoning, told reporters at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sunday morning before the opening meeting of the first session of the 14th National People's Congress that crew members from 18 ethnic minorities and from across the country are working on board the gigantic ship.

"In addition, there are females in the posts of steering, radar operations, mechanical and electrical sections, and flight deck control," said the officer, a PLA deputy to the top legislative body.

Zhu said the past decade witnessed the birth and growth of China's aircraft carrier force as well as the PLA Navy's path toward a world-class power.

Behind the achievements were hard work and contributions from generations of crew members, she noted.

"Our navy will be anywhere where there are China's national interests," the officer said, calling on youngsters to join the carrier force.

The PLA Navy now operates two carriers — CNS Liaoning and CNS Shandong. The Liaoning was commissioned to the Navy in September 2012 after being refitted in China for several years from an imported Soviet-era vessel, while the Shandong was domestically designed and constructed and entered service in December 2019.

The CNS Fujian, China's third aircraft carrier, is in the final stage of its construction at a shipyard in Shanghai and will undergo sea trials this year, according to its commanders.