Chinese mystery submarine gets more mysterious.

[TLAM Strike]

It has a bulge on its keel.



Ideas people?

[Mush Martin]

Looks like a modified Kilo to my eye. No actual guess from me on the bulge.
However , Experimental {Prototype?} MHD device,
or what Rocket anti torpedo system but if so its
for aft only. Wasnt PRAN looking at the Russian Rocket torps
when Kursk went down ?.
M.

[Stealhead]

It is a Kilo.Hard to tell from such a grainy pic and the blocks are blocking the full view as well making it hard to tell if its more of a fin like bulge than a bulge and in either case we cant tell if it is like this on the other side.

Looks to me it may be a large bulge that is along the whole keel in that section of the boat and you cant see it all thanks to the blocks.Must be for some sort of SONAR would be my guess and a powerful one.Then again it looks as though might be some sort of thin tarp is laying over the hull see where the color gets more brownish in front of the conning tower looks like plastic maybe?Might be a tarp or some sort of cover and that bugle is the tarp hanging down at the bottom behind the blocks. Too hard to say from just this one photo.Though if it is a bulge it seems rather large and why in such an odd place? Looks like something for downwards scanning from its location.

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by Stealhead

It is a Kilo.

Its a heavily modified Kilo design. it has a larger more streamlined sail and a dorsal rudder.

Some think the bulge is to accommodate a missile silo for a navalized DF-21D ASBM.

[FIREWALL]

Buldge is for their legs to stickout and kick for silent speed.

[Oberon]

Tres Interessant, it's a pity we can't get a shot from the other side of the hull. It's possible it's to slot in a DF-21, that'll make it the first SSB that's been afloat in quite a few years. Got to be a testing stage though, SSBs haven't been around for a while for a reason, although in the shallow waters in the strait...dunno...could be a game changer. Personally I'm surprised the Chinese haven't spoken to Tupolev about getting some Tu-22M3s to bolster their ranks, the H-6 certainly can't be relied upon to get close enough to a CVBG to launch one of their ASMs.

[Stealhead]

What is the boat in front of the dry dock there? A Kilo as well looks to have a narrower conning tower than a Kilo from that shot.Also interesting that you cant see anyone in the picture seems that the workers were not around when it was taken.

[Wolfehunter]

Maybe it has a mini sub in it.. Its pregnant? Dunno could be a compartment for releasing some remote drones or something.. or they've added a new swimming pool in it.. No no.. I know.. Its a new Computer room has about 20+ guys who can money farm WOW = Profits.

They have to support there military.. What better way getting behind foreign waters and using there bandwidth...

[Platapus]

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

Some think the bulge is to accommodate a missile silo for a navalized DF-21D ASBM.

I can't see how the DF21 could be launched from this "bulge" and like the quote from Hunt for Red October, why would you want to?

[McBeck]

Simple...its a beercooler

[Subnuts]

Originally Posted by McBeck

Simple...its a beercooler

"Could you launch a beer horizontally?"
"Yeah, you could. But why would you want to?"

[TLAM Strike]

Originally Posted by Platapus

I can't see how the DF21 could be launched from this "bulge" and like the quote from Hunt for Red October, why would you want to?

The bluge is at fit the bottom of the missile while the rest goes up throught the hull in to the sail, like on the Golf class SSB (which China also operates.)

Originally Posted by Stealhead

What is the boat in front of the dry dock there?

That is a Yuan class SSK.

[Oberon]

Originally Posted by TLAM Strike

like on the Golf class SSB (which China also operates.)

That's stretching it a bit far isn't it TLAM? I don't think that Golf has left port in years.