5th and 6th Chinese Type 94 SSBNs Possibly Commissioned

Minnie Chan at the South China Morning Post reported April 29, 2020 https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3082195/chinese-navy-puts-two-new-nuclear-submarines-service along the lines:

That it is probable China has either re-commissioned its 3^rd and 4^th Type 94 “Jin” class SSBNs or they are, newly commissioned 5^th and 6^th Type 94s.

In any case the 2 Type 94s have “upgrades to technology such as radar, sonar and torpedoes,”

Minnie Chan further reports:

“The vessels are revamped versions of the Type 094, or Jin-class, nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBN) and will bolster the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s underwater combat strength, two military sources told the South China Morning Post.

...China planned to build six Type 094 subs, and four were on show in a parade in Qingdao, Shandong province, in April last year to mark the 70th anniversary of the PLA Navy.

Another source close to the navy said two more Type 094s had probably been handed over to the navy since then.

...The Type 094 is designed to carry 16 [?] JL-2 ballistic missiles, which have a range of about 7,000km (4,350 miles).

But the Type 096 [next generation of SSBN, under development] will be able to carry 24 [?] JL-3s, which have an estimated range of more than 10,000km (6,200 miles), putting the United States, Europe, India and Russia within range, according to the most recent Pentagon report on China’s military.

The Post reported earlier that the PLA Navy had tested the JL-3 missile

In its “2019 China Military Power Report”, the Pentagon said that construction of the Type 096 would probably begin in the early 2020s. 

See the rest of Minnie Chan’s article where she refers to: the Shandong, the first Chinese-built aircraft carrier; the J-15 mass-produced carrier-based fighter jet; Type 055 destroyer; and the new Gaoxin-9 anti-submarine patrol aircraft (based on China’s Y-8 and Y-9 cargo planes).