Exercises Political Work

A Base of Naval Aviation University Conducts In-Depth Study and Implementation of Xi Jinping's Thought on Strengthening the Military

海军航空大学某基地深入学习贯彻习近平强军思想

PLA Daily (解放军报) 4 June 2026

Summary

A Naval Aviation University base — unnamed but operating carrier-based aircraft and airborne early warning platforms — is running carrier aviation cadet training explicitly reoriented around combat thinking (实战思维), with post-flight debriefs tied directly to 'Xi Jinping on Strengthening and Rejuvenating the Military (Volume IV)' and a formal assessment mechanism that failed a technically proficient cadet for poor battlefield situational awareness. The article documents an institutional problem the base's Party committee has named explicitly: cadets who can fly and land on carriers but cannot fight or conduct joint operations, a gap the base is addressing through a structured 'instructor-led training, psychological guidance, and tactical reshaping' mechanism embedded across the full cultivation cycle. This fits the broader PLA pattern of subordinating technical proficiency metrics to combat-effectiveness criteria, but the specificity here — a named failing standard, a named corrective mechanism, and a stated feedback loop with frontline units — makes it a useful record of how that reorientation is being operationalized at the carrier aviation training level.

Translation

A Base of Naval Aviation University Conducts In-Depth Study and Implementation of Xi Jinping's Thought on Strengthening the Military——

Combat and Education Integrated, Tempering Wings Over Sea and Sky

■ He Yu, Lü Zhihao

At dawn on a summer day, multiple carrier-based aircraft from a base of Naval Aviation University ignited afterburners and climbed skyward, networked and linked with airborne early warning aircraft, and flew to a designated maritime and aerial zone. Climbing, diving, launching… Flight cadets steadily controlled their aircraft, launched a surprise attack on the target, and successfully completed the assigned mission.

Without removing their flight gear, the debrief began. Flight instructors, drawing on their recent study of "Xi Jinping on Strengthening and Rejuvenating the Military (Volume IV)," led cadets in examining the causes of problems that arose during the mission, identifying countermeasures, formulating improvement plans, and honing their combat-ready skills. This is a microcosm of how the base integrates mission realities with in-depth study and implementation of Xi Jinping's Thought on Strengthening the Military.

"Chairman Xi pointed out that the ability to fight and win battles must serve as the starting point and ultimate goal of personnel work, that we must keep pace with the evolving trends in the form of warfare (战争形态), and improve the capacity and level of supplying personnel prepared for war. This important statement points the way for us in carrying out personnel cultivation work." The base leadership explained that they have taken "Xi Jinping on Strengthening and Rejuvenating the Military (Volume IV)" as an important guide for conducting instruction and organizing training, adhering to a combat-oriented (向战为战) orientation, and cultivating personnel who are capable of fighting (能战之才), daring to fight (敢战之才), and skilled in fighting (善战之才) through combat training practice. At the same time, they actively guide officers and soldiers to consciously apply the Party's innovative theories to resolve bottleneck problems constraining the enhancement of combat effectiveness (战斗力), address shortcomings and build capabilities through realistic combat training (实战实训), and continuously drive flight cadets to transform and advance from "able to fly and able to land on a carrier" to "able to fight and able to conduct joint operations."

Some time ago, the base organized a flight training assessment. One cadet, having failed to grasp changes in the battlefield situation (战场态势), misjudged the "enemy situation" at a critical moment, resulting in a missed attack window. Although his individual flight technique ranked at the top in single-event assessments, the assessment panel's final determination was "unqualified." "Combat thinking (实战思维) is the prerequisite for winning and the key to generating combat effectiveness." The assessment panel's response was unequivocal.

This issue drew the high attention of the base's Party committee. In order to cultivate cadets' combat thinking from the "very beginning of flight" (飞之初), the base Party committee studied and explored a mechanism of "instructor-led training, psychological guidance, and tactical reshaping" (教官带训、心理疏导、战术重塑), embedding realistic combat training throughout the entire process of cadet cultivation, and driving cadets to transform from "pilots" to "combatants" through organizing adversarial exercises and deductions, debriefing and analyzing battle cases, and conducting comprehensive assessment and judgment of information.

In a subsequent assessment, faced with sudden electronic jamming and a surprise attack by "enemy aircraft," the cadet accurately assessed the "enemy situation," decisively evaded and counterattacked, and ultimately passed the assessment.

As the assessment concluded and another cohort of cadets, their wings now fully grown, prepared to head to frontline units, the base leadership stated with conviction: "When cadets graduate and go to the units, that is not the endpoint of our work, but a new starting point for personnel cultivation. We will dynamically optimize cadet cultivation plans based on feedback from the units, providing solid personnel support for the units' combat effectiveness development."

Combat and education integrated, tempering wings over sea and sky. As theoretical study continues to deepen, the base's officers and soldiers are directing their energy toward practical application and exerting force toward combat, with enthusiasm for military training and war preparation (练兵备战) continuing to run high. During a recent round-the-clock flight training exercise, base participants were full of fighting spirit and successfully completed training subjects including nighttime aerial combat confrontation and aerial refueling.

Original Chinese

海军航空大学某基地深入学习贯彻习近平强军思想—— 战教一体海空砺翅 ■何宇吕志浩夏日拂晓，海军航空大学某基地多架舰载机加力升空，与预警机组网建链，飞赴预定海空域。跃升、俯冲、发射……飞行学员稳稳操纵战机，对目标发起突袭，圆满完成既定任务。征衣未解，复盘开始。飞行教官结合近段时间学习《习近平论强军兴军（四）》的心得体会，带领学员针对任务中存在的问题查原因找对策，制订改进方案，磨砺实战本领。这是该基地结合任务实际，深入学习贯彻习近平强军思想的缩影。 “习主席指出，要把能打仗、打胜仗作为人才工作出发点和落脚点，紧跟战争形态演变趋势，提高备战打仗人才供给能力和水平。这一重要论述为我们做好人才培养工作指明了方向。”该基地领导介绍，他们将《习近平论强军兴军（四）》作为开展教学和组织训练的重要遵循，坚持向战为战导向，在战训实践中培育能战之才、敢战之才、善战之才。同时，他们积极引导官兵自觉运用党的创新理论解决制约战斗力提升瓶颈问题，在实战实训中补短强能，不断推动飞行学员从“能飞能上舰”向“能战能联合”转型提升。前段时间，该基地组织飞行训练考核，一名学员因没能掌握战场态势变化，关键时刻误判“敌情”，导致错失攻击窗口，尽管其飞行技术在单项考核中名列前茅，但考核组给出的最终判定为“不合格”。“实战思维是打赢的前提，是战斗力生成的关键。”考核组的回答掷地有声。这一问题引起该基地党委高度重视。为了在“飞之初”培塑学员的实战思维，该基地党委研究探索“教官带训、心理疏导、战术重塑”机制，将实战化训练贯穿学员培养全过程，通过组织对抗推演、战例复盘剖析、信息综合研判等，推动学员从“驾驶员”向“战斗员”转变。之后的考核中，面对突发电子干扰与“敌机”突袭，这名学员准确判断“敌情”，果断规避并进行反击，最终顺利通过考核。考核结束，看到又一批学员羽翼渐丰，即将走向一线部队，该基地领导坚定地说：“学员结业后走向部队，不是我们工作的终点，而是人才培养的新起点。我们将结合部队反馈动态优化学员培养方案，为部队战斗力建设提供坚实人才支撑。” 战教一体，海空砺翅。随着理论学习不断深入，该基地官兵向实用劲、向战发力，练兵备战热情持续高涨。在前不久的一次跨昼夜飞行训练中，该基地参训人员斗志昂扬，圆满完成夜间空战对抗、空中加油等课目训练。