Type 093 Shang

China's second-generation nuclear attack submarine (SSN/SSGN), spanning the baseline Type 093, improved Type 093A, and the VLS-equipped Type 093B, and the backbone of the People's Liberation Army Navy's undersea fleet.

Overview

The Type 093 Shang class is the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) only operational nuclear-powered attack submarine. Built by Bohai Shipyard at Huludao, the series entered service in 2006 and has evolved through three principal variants. The latest iteration, the Type 093B, is classified by the United States as a cruise-missile submarine (SSGN) because of its vertical-launch system, giving the PLAN a massed land-attack and anti-ship strike capability from a stealthy submerged platform. Alongside the noisy Type 094 ballistic-missile boat, the Shang family is the keel of China’s nuclear submarine fleet, though open-source assessments consistently place it a half-generation or more behind contemporary Western and Russian SSNs in acoustic signature.

Development

Design work on China’s second-generation nuclear attack boat began in the late 1980s, and the lead Type 093 was laid down in 1994. The boat was commissioned in 2006, marking a protracted 12-year build cycle, according to Wikipedia. Early hulls (Shang I) lacked a towed sonar array and were followed by the lengthened Type 093A (Shang II) with improved acoustics and a stern towed array. The definitive variant is the Type 093B (Shang III), which introduces a vertical-launch system and a pump-jet propulsor. The U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) stated in March 2026 that 6–8 Type 093Bs were already in service, with serial production expected to continue into the early 2030s, as reported by USNI News. Construction throughput at Huludao, observed via satellite imagery, suggests China is now building nuclear submarines at a faster rate than any Western yard, a shift highlighted by Army Recognition.

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