China is already building a 3,000-metre runway on Fiery Cross reef, the longest in the area, which could ultimately be used for combat operations, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Airstrip building in the Spratly islands goes back nearly 40 years and four other claimants already have such facilities, according to CSIS' Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative.
But China has been accused of seeking to advance its sovereignty claims with its land reclamation programme and tensions have been rising in the South China Sea.
Satellite photos of another reef, Subi, where nearly four million square metres of land have been reclaimed, indicate Beijing may be getting ready to build another strip of similar length there, it added.
"A Chinese airbase at Fiery Cross Reef would allow for much-improved situational awareness," the website said, adding it could let China deploy maritime surveillance aircraft and fighter squadrons in the area.
"China may be more readily able to use the airbase for patrols or limited offensive operations against other South China Sea claimants, or even United States assets," it added.
According to the website, Malaysia has the second-longest runway in the area on Swallow Reef at 1,368 metres. The Philippines' strip is slightly shorter but with an "extremely worn" dirt surface.
Vietnam, the first runway builder in the region in 1976, has the smallest at just 550 metres.
Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam are all members of the Association of South East Asian Nations, as is Brunei, another claimant to the waters.
Apprehension has grown over the militarisation of the South China Sea, nearly all of which is claimed by Beijing.
Washington has a network of military bases in Asia and conducts active reconnaissance of the area, and has been particularly critical of Beijing's activities, though it has also called on other claimants to cease new construction.
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