The Type 094 (; Chinese designation: 09-IV; NATO reporting name: Jin class) is a class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines developed by China for the People's Liberation Army Navy Submarine Force. The Type 094 succeeds the Type 092 submarine and precedes the Type 096 submarine, which is under development.
Description The Type 094's chief designer was Zhang Jinlin. This type is likely based on the Type 093 nuclear-powered attack submarine.
The Type 094 is China's "first credible sea-based nuclear deterrent" according to the United States Department of Defense. They were initially armed with 12 JL-2 SLBMs; each missile had one warhead and a range capable of reaching parts of Alaska launched from near China. By late 2022, they may have been rearmed with JL-3 SLBMs able to reach the continental United States from the South China Sea; ranges of over have been reported.
Starting with the third boat, the sail was streamlined with a small cusp or fillet at the bottom of leading edge and a slight round down at the top of the sail. This was similar to the streamlining refitted to one of the first Type 093 submarines and likely did little to reduce overall drag.
The fifth and sixth boats reduced the number of limber holes to reduce noise at high speeds.
Popular reporting sometimes uses the designation "Type 094A" for boats starting with the third one; the designation appears not to be officially used by the PLAN.
Noise The Type 094 is noisier than contemporary submarines. In 2004, a Chinese researcher reported that the Type 094 had an acoustic signature of 120 decibels, comparable to the . In 2009, the Office of Naval Intelligence of the United States Navy listed the Type 094 as noisier than Soviet/Russian SSBNs from the late 1970s. In 2015, Australian researchers Brendan Thomas-Noone and Rorey Medcalf noted that noisiness and the range of the JL-2 limited the submarine's effectiveness in attacks on the contiguous United States, but not on India.
Operational history
A Type 094 was photographed by commercial satellites in late 2006 at the Xiaopingdao Submarine Base. The first commissioned in 2007 and six were in commission in 2020. They began nuclear deterrence patrols in December 2015.
Type 094 boats have surfaced unexpectedly in public view without official explanation. In October 2017, a boat surfaced amidst a Vietnamese fishing fleet near the Paracel Islands, possibly due to a technical issue. Boats have also surfaced in the Taiwan Strait in 2020, 2021, and 2024.
Boats
NameHull no.BuilderLaid downLaunchedCommissionedStatus411Bohai Shipyard, Huludao200128 July 2004March 2007ActiveChangzheng 10412200320062010ActiveChangzheng 114132004December 20092012Active2006Jane's Fighting Ships, 2023–24 Edition, ISBN 978-0-7106-3428 3, page 132.20112015Active Bohai Shipyard, Huludao 2017 April 2020Active Changzheng 18 421 23 April 2021Active 2024 2025
See also List of submarine classes in service
References
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