The unusual design of the new Chinese submarine surprised experts

Photos of the first launch of a new Chinese submarine - presumably an upgraded version of the Type-039-appeared on the Network. There is also a lot of interesting things inside it, but the commentators were most struck by the unusual shape of the ship's cabin.

Built in Wuhan, in the depths of mainland China, the submarine has already descended the Yangtze to Shanghai and started testing at sea, writes Popular Mechanics. The first thing that catches your eye is the "chopped" edges of the superstructure, which apparently reduce the radar visibility of the submarine during ascent. Unlike submarines, diesel-electric submarines spend a lot of time on the surface, and go to depth immediately before the attack. Anti-submarine aircraft use long-range radars in their work to find submarines long before they detect a hunter.

The ability to move unnoticed in a surface position will save the Type-039 a lot of fuel and will allow it to stay on combat patrol longer. The outlines of the Chinese ship's cabin resemble the A-26 submarine under construction in Sweden, but there is still too little information to accuse the PRC of another copy, warns an expert on underwater forces X. Sutton.

Information about Type-039 is extremely scarce. Official Beijing traditionally does not comment on military innovations. Open sources talk about lithium-ion batteries - they have a large charge - and even an air-independent power plant. The latter is unlikely, since the VNSU does not provide the necessary speed under water and is not suitable for attack submarines.

Anton Valagin