Carrier returns to Dalian after long mission

The Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning has returned to Dalian on the northeastern coast amid speculation by military experts that it will undergo its first overall maintenance.

Maintenance work could take about six months at a Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co dry dock, Cao Weidong, a researcher at the Naval Military Studies Research Institute of the People's Liberation Army, told Beijing News on Tuesday.

During maintenance, engineers review a ship's design, cabin layouts, materials and construction to discover defects and fix them, Cao said.