Why Chinese Submarines Could Soon Be Quieter than U.S. Ones

South China Morning Post (Hong Kong)

04 July 2017

The U.S. Navy’s Pacific fleet used to mock Chinese submarines for being too noisy and too easy to detect, but that has largely been remedied in recent years and China is now on the cusp of taking the lead in a cutting-edge propulsion technology.

Collin Koh Swee Lean, a submarine expert from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, noted the growing scientific and technological maturity of China’s submarine development.

“In the long term, if the pump-jet propulsion is declared fully operational and tested successfully … future [Chinese] submarines would be equipped with pump-jet propulsion as a standard design feature,” he said, adding that the new technology would also benefit other naval shipbuilding projects, such as surface warships.

“The operational/strategic ramifications would be that China would muster stealthier submarines … and this essentially broadens various options for Beijing where it comes to the peacetime use of its naval capabilities.”

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