China has no reason to rush into nuclear-powered carriers - its need to protect its trade routes, particularly its petroleum imports from the Middle East, can easily be satisfied by conventionally powered carriers and their task forces. PLAN doesn’t need to repeat mistakes we made with the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) - our first nuclear-powered carrier or the French with the Charles de Gaulle. Despite being the world’s leading ship builder over the past three years, China has yet to build its first nuclear-powered surface vessel and should take its time developing a suitable nuclear reactor that is easy to refuel, maintain and replace. This reactor should first be placed and tested in its ice breakers; then in large (over 100,000 ton) commercial vessels, such as LPG/LNG carriers and cruise ships. Even these successful operations will not guarantee success in the military context, as the latter requires much higher speed in maneuvers and cruising. Despite the major advantage of a nuclear-powered carrier - no need to be refueled at sea, the disadvantages of being hard to service and maintain have made most navies shy away from nuclear power. The French, with a troubled history of operating the nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle, proposed a non-nuclear carrier when submitting a bid to the Royal Australian Navy. The Royal Navy chose conventional power for its two latest carriers - HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales. The after service life of a nuclear powered carrier is also problematic. Selling it to other countries could be banned on proliferation grounds. We can’t even donate our retired nuclear-powered carriers to naval museums. China hasn’t shown it has developed a suitable nuclear reactor for a surface vessel, much less a 100,000 ton carrier requiring sustained speeds over 30 knots. Powering PLAN’s 004 or 005 carrier with nuclear reactors would be placing the cart before the horse.