First official electronic chart in service

BEIJING - Ships sailing in Chinese waters can now say goodbye to paper charts as an electronic chart was officially released by the navy on Thursday.

The navigation guarantee department of the Chinese Navy Headquarters, China's official hydrographic surveying and mapping organization, announced during a news briefing in Beijing that China's new electronic navigation chart is available for purchase and download by registered Internet users.

The electronic navigation chart includes 400 maps of Chinese seas in different regions, an officer surnamed Yuan from the navigation guarantee department, told China Daily on Thursday.