U.S. defense officials told CNN and the Wall Street Journal that China’s state-of-the-art nuclear-powered submarine was confirmed to have sunk while docked at a shipyard last spring.
According to media reports on the 26th, the first Zhou-class attack nuclear submarine suffered a sinking accident while undergoing final maintenance ahead of departure at the end of May.
The accident location is the Wuchang state-owned shipyard on the banks of the Yangtze River in Wuhan, Hubei Province.
Satellite photos taken continuously at the time showed a scene where the ship, which was docked, suddenly disappeared.
◾️Satellite photo capture of salvage work
In early June, satellite photos captured several large crane ships lifting a sunken submarine.
Since then, military media, social media, and Taiwanese media have been busy trying to determine the identity of this ship, but the presumption that it is a diesel submarine has prevailed.
This is because Taiwanese media reported that the Type 039A Yuan-class 3,600-ton diesel model, the main model of the People’s Liberation Army Navy, sank.
◾️ “Low risk of nuclear leak”
CNN reported that in a satellite photo taken by Maxar Technology in March before the sinking, the rudder at the stern was identified as X-shaped.
The X-shaped rudder is a relatively recent design example developed to enhance stealth during submarine maneuvers.
As a result of confirmation by authorities, this is the first time that it has been revealed that the sunken ship is a state-of-the-art nuclear submarine.
It has not been confirmed whether there was nuclear fuel in the ship’s hull at the time of the sinking, but outside experts believe it is highly likely that there was, the Wall Street Journal reported.
However, the risk of a nuclear leak was evaluated as low as it was highly likely that the nuclear reactor did not operate at high output because the submarine was before going out to sea.
◾️ People’s Liberation Army ‘silence’
The sinking of a nuclear submarine in the metropolitan city of Wuhan is likely to have caused significant repercussions within China, but the authorities made no announcement.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Chinese Embassy in the United States did not respond to a request for comment.
Regarding this, a senior U.S. defense official told CNN, “It is not surprising that the People’s Liberation Army Navy is trying to cover up the sinking of the first Zhou-class nuclear submarine.”
The People’s Liberation Army Navy has established a regular aircraft carrier fleet and has accelerated the strengthening of its military power, but has been sluggish in modernizing the nuclear submarine field.
◾️ Nuclear submarines ‘USA 71, China 12’
The first Zhou-class ship, which was confirmed to have sunk this time, was developed as part of China’s program to catch up with the United States’ maritime power.
The United States has long led the world in submarine manufacturing technology, and China is actively working to close the gap.
As of last year, China is believed to be operating 6 nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, 6 nuclear-powered attack submarines, and 48 diesel attack submarines.
The U.S. Navy has 53 fast attack submarines, 14 ballistic missile submarines, and 4 guided missile submarines, all of which are nuclear-powered.
◾️ Fleet expansion plan expected to be disrupted
Experts predict that this accident will have had significant repercussions within the Chinese military, as the nuclear submarine developed with the latest design was sunk.
“This is a very significant event,” said Brent Sadler, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, in the Wall Street Journal. “The sinking of the new nuclear submarine will likely slow down China’s plans to expand its nuclear submarine fleet.”
A nuclear submarine has also sunk in the United States.
This is the case of the Sturgeon-class nuclear submarine ‘Kitaro’, which was commissioned in 1972 after sinking due to a worker’s mistake while docked at a California shipyard in 1969.
◾️ Representative asymmetric power
A nuclear submarine is a submarine equipped with a small nuclear reactor and can operate under the sea for more than several months.
Nuclear power can not only utilize fuel but also produce its own drinking water and oxygen.
As a result, there is no limit to the distance you can travel anywhere on the planet, so you virtually never come up to the surface except to resupply food.
Therefore, it is classified as an asymmetric power that cannot be compared to diesel submarines.
VOA News
