For a long time, replenishment and logistical support was a bottleneck that kept the People's Liberation Army Navy from open water missions. Now the navy has made a priority of building up that support in its expansions plans. Today in our special series "Red Star, Blue Water", CGTN correspondent Han Bin is embedded in a training mission to see what's being done.

Their day begins before sunrise. Modernization isn't just about new equipment. And the military is not all about combat. Logistics are at the heart of any operation. It's the coordination between personnel and hardware.

DOU JICHAO, TEAM LEADER DIESEL PROPULSION, PLANS CHANGCHUN "Generation equipment supplies power to ships, including some safeguards for living facilities. They are the 'heart' of the ship. A 24-hour job, basically in high temperatures, high humidity, high heat, and high noise."

Dou Jichao works at the bottom of the ship - the power control room. Hidden from most of the crew, but it's key for the mission.

DOU JICHAO, TEAM LEADER DIESEL PROPULSION, PLANS CHANGCHUN "We have a tight training task. We have to make full use of our time to check the machines in preventive maintenance. A ship is a systematic chain with tight coordination. If one link is broken, it can ruin the whole task."

It's said an army marches on its stomach. The cooks compete to serve up the best on budget.

ZHANG MENGFEI, CULINARY TEAM HEAD PLANS CHANGCHUN "Space is limited. The wind is high at sea. It will sharply swing from left to right. Joining the army means going to the battlefield. So when I got this assignment right off the bat, I thought there's something wrong, and there was a kind of resistance in my heart. Now I feel I'm slowly falling in love with this job. Every time after the meal, when everyone praises the food, I feel very fulfilled."

Zhang Mengfei learned all his cooking skills on board. The crew needs fuel just like the ship.

XUE MING, DIRECTOR LOGISTICS SUPPORT, PLANS CHANGCHUN "In recent years, with the steady advancement of the reforms to strengthen the army, and the adjustment and optimization of the force formation system. Logistic requirements are increasingly moving towards regulation, standardization, precision and efficiency."

ZHANG MENGFEI, CULINARY TEAM LEADER PLANS CHANGCHUN "The leaders' demands for logistic support are very high. We are constantly improving ourselves."  

Food costs have been steadily rising. And it's hard to get fresh vegetables during blue-water training. The Navy is working on getting replenishment capacity up to speed.

"Replenishment during flotilla maneuvers has been regularized. With the increase in blue-water training, the ships are sailing farther and farther and must be replenished. This multi-ship, horizontal and vertical replenishment method is now normal practice and a major subject in our training."

Today's task is re-fueling.

"Visibility isn't good today. Under such circumstances, we organized horizontal and vertical replenishment training for four ships. It should reflect the usual training level of officers and sailors."

HAN BIN EAST CHINA SEA "To outsiders, logistics are often invisible, but they are the key for efficiency. The navy cannot run without these support staff. True real success will be measured when the overall capabilities are tested.  Han Bin, CGTN, from the East China Sea."