Loss of state-of-the-art vessel in May or June is setback to Chinese push for naval parity with US

Loss of state-of-the-art vessel in May or June is setback to Chinese push for naval parity with US

China’s efforts to achieve maritime military parity with the US have suffered a serious blow after its newest state-of-the-art nuclear submarine sank in a dock, American officials have confirmed.

The incident happened last May or June at the Wuchang shipyard near Wuhan – the same city where the Covid-19 pandemic is believed to have originated – and came to light, thanks to satellite imagery, despite efforts by the country’s communist authorities to stage a cover-up.

A US defence official told Reuters that the Zhou-class vessel – first of a new kind of Chinese submarines and distinctive for its X-shaped stern that aids manoeuvrability – is believed to have been next to a pier when it sank.

It is not known if there were any casualties – or if the submarine had any nuclear fuel onboard at the time, although experts have deemed that likely, according to the Wall Street Journal, which initially broke the story. The submarine was eventually salvaged but it is believed that it will take many months before it can be put to sea.

    • massive_bereavement
      1•5 hours ago

      Welp, it’s amazing how many accidents were caused by either running aground or crashing into another vessel, in an era where sensors are so common.

      I guess telling how close stuff is underwater is hard.

    • sepiEnglish
      3•10 hours ago

      What I am trying to say out loud is that China, Russia and India are not competent with subs at this point in history. Russia is not competent with any sort of navy.

      My yardstick is “how many subs have been irretrievably lost with or without all souls on board in peacetime”.

      • @Rooskie91@discuss.online
        2•9 hours ago

        Russia is the only navy that has submarines that even compete with America’s so not sure what you’re talking about there. Russian submarine hulls are made out of titanium and can dive ~1000 feet deeper than the US’s. In a lot of cases, they have much better submarines than we do.

        Part of the reason the cold war was so scary was because of the supremecy of their submarines. Didn’t you ever see The Hunt for Red October???

        Also, America has lost 2 nuclear submarines to accidents, the thresher and the scorpion. The thresher was during trials after repair, and (along with the loss of the challenger space shuttle) gave rise to modern day Quality Assurance practices in engineering disciplines.