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Type 039A Yuan-class Nomenclature

The original design (Type 39A) first appeared in 2001, and 13 were built. But in 2008, a noticeably different Type 39 appeared. This was called Type 39B. In 2018, the US DOD reported that "Since the mid-1990s ... Chinese shipyards have delivered 13 SONG-class SS units (Type 039) and 17 YUAN-class diesel-electric air-independent power attack submarines (SSP) (Type 039A), with a total of 20 YUANs projected for production by 2020".

There serious, almost complete, confusion over the nomenclature of Chinese submarines.

• Type 039 - Song-class cigar-nosed with a step sail
• Type 039G - Song-class [not PLAN designation]
• Type 039A - Yuan-class with teardrop-hull, CCDAIP (1st-gen AIP)
• Type 039AG - revised conning tower with additional sensors
• Type 039B - S-20 export Yuan-class, no AIP
• Type 039B - Yuan-class with SEAIP (Current China AIP tech)
• Type 039BG - Dec 2013 - revised conning tower w/hydrodynamic base extrusions, side-mounted sonar + additional sensors.
• Type 039C - Yuan-class with AIP capability, launched in 2014
• Type 041 - [mis-label by NATO] Yuan with teardrop-hull + different AIP
• Type 041 - Type 032 testbed submarine, wrongly termed Type 041

There was no such designation as 041 or any type 04X conventional submarines, since all conventioal submarines (SSK) are designated 03X, as all nuclear submarines are designated 09X. The letter "G" stands for "gai" meaning "Modify", normally used after initials such as the A, B, C etc. Examples are seen in the 053 series PLAN Frigates and the 051 series destroyers. The first batch 053 is known as 053H, then followed by 053H1, 053H2 and 053H3. When a new ship is built based on upgrade of a 053H1, it will be designated 053H1G.

The US DoD does not seem to recognize this multitude of variants, simply reporting on Type 039A Yuan. Too many of the reported variants are differentiated by minor differences which are difficult to observe. Until matters are sorted out in some dispositive fashion, GlobalSecurity.org will use:

• Type 039 - Song-class 1,800 ton cigar-nosed with a step sail
• Type 039A - Yuan-class 2,800 ton with teardrop-hull, CCDAIP (China 1st-gen AIP)
• Type 039B - Yuan-class with revised sail, launched in 2014
• Type 039C - Yuan-class with Li-batteries

Khubilai Khan (1215-94) was a grandson of Genghis Khan (1167?-1227) and the supreme leader of all Mongol tribes. After the Song Dynasty had been destroyed in 1279, Khubilai Khan declared himself emperor of a united China with its capital at Dadu, and he established the Yuan ("first," "beginning") Dynasty (1279-1368). A rich cultural diversity evolved in China during the Yuan Dynasty, as it had in other periods of foreign dynastic rule. Major achievements included the development of drama and the novel and the increased use of the written vernacular. The introduction of foreign musical instruments enriched the Chinese performing arts. The conversion to Islam of growing numbers of people in northwestern and southwestern China dates from this period. The Mongols undertook extensive public works. Land and water communications were reorganized and improved. In time, Khubilai's successors became sinicized, and they then lost all influence on other Mongol lands across Asia. Rivalry among the Mongol imperial heirs, natural disasters, and numerous peasant uprisings led to the collapse of the Yuan dynasty. The last of the nine successors of Khubilai was expelled from Dadu in 1368 by Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).