The timing of my last post is both fortunately and unfortunately timed.
Fortunately because I was ahead of the ONI director, Rear Admiral Brookes to compile a list of Chinese SSN launches and highlighted the drastic uptick in production.
Unfortunately because the data provide by the testimony has significant gap from what I have provided to y'all. So here I am trying to reconcile between the two.
For the ONI director's testimony, you can click this link.
I put the image from my last post here as well for reference. In my last post, based on Chinese language Wikipedia and my own tracking through Sentinel 2, I estimated 3 Type 093B launched per year for 2023, 2024 and 2025. Now I revised down to 2 per year for the those 3 years. This revision is due to below reasons:
Rear Admiral Brookes mentioned that the PLAN is on track to commission 6 SSGNs (that's how ONI classifies the Type 093B), 2 SSBNs and 3 SSNs by 2027. So among the launches that I attributed to Type 093B, there's the possibility that 2 of them are actually Type 094A SSBNs. Additionally, though Chinese Wikipedia mentioned 3 launches of Type 093B in 2024, I have only observed 2 in that year. So it is possible that the Bohai shipyard launched 2 093B and 1 094A in 2023, 2 093B in 2024 , 2 093B and 1 094A in 2025.
It is also possible that Rear Admiral Brookes' testimony is based on intel as of mid 2025, hence not including the second 093B launched in later that year. And of course it would not include the one launched in Jan. 2026. So in reality till today, the PLAN should have launched 8 093B and will get at least 6 of them commissioned by 2027.
I also added the Type 041 SSN (some people call it SSK-N classifying it as a separate category since it uses a small reactor to power Stirling engines somewhat akin to an AIP submarine). I have not closely track the development of that submarine so I will take the words of the director of ONI, add 3 of them and spread between 2023-2025.
After the revision, between my two posts, the PLAN launched the same amount of nuclear powered attack submarines between 2003 - 2026, but details matter. I wish to provide y'all with the most updated information I can compile.
Thanks for your support!