China - Ming Class Incidents

Hull 361 Accident

On 2 May 2003, the Chinese official media reported that one of the PLA Navy's submarine (hull 361) encountered a severe mechanical malfunction, which killed all 70 sailors and officers onboard. Accordingly to the report, the tragedy occurred on 16 April 2003, when the Type 035 Ming class submarine was taking part in a naval exercise east of Neichangshan Island. The cause of the accident was briefly described by the report as a “mechanical malfunction”. The apparently rapid recovery of the submarine indicated that it was not submerged and did not sink after the accident.

A number of questions remain unanswered today, as exactly what caused the accident and why there were additional personnel onboard (the standard crew of the submarine is 47 while the hull 361 had 70 people onboard).

Some more details on the hull 361 accident were disclosed on the Chinese Internet in recent years, though their authenticity cannot be verified. One report suggested that the submarine was carrying 13 cadets from the Qingdao Submarine Academy onboard as well as its standard crew to take part in the naval exercise. The submarine was at periscope depth to recharge its batteries by running its diesel engines, which requires the snorkel raised above the sea surface into the air. However, the bad weather and high waves may have caused water being sucked into the snorkel, while the diesel was still running. This resulted in the diesel sucking oxygen out of inside the submarine, suffocating the crew.

The report confirmed that on the older Type 033 submarine copied from the Soviet Romeo class, a device was installed to automatically shut down the diesel and switch to battery-run electric motors if it detects a drop in barometric pressure inside the hull. However, the device was flawed and often shut down the diesel unnecessarily. On the indigenously-built Type 035, the device was said to have been removed and replaced by a manual switch, which can be activated by a crew member when the low-pressure detector gives warning. In the case of hull 361, the accident took place so fast that the crew may simply not have enough time to respond before they were suffocated.

The report also confirmed that for a fairly long period of time, the naval base of hull 361 was totally unaware of the incident, believing that the submarine was in radio silence during the exercise. The submarine, which had lost its power and control, was later spotted by some fishing boats outside the exercise zone. When this was reported to the PLA Navy North Sea Fleet headquarters, it was thought to be a foreign submarine that had invaded Chinese waters. The PLA Navy finally realised that hull 361 may have encountered some problems when the naval base reported that it had completed lost contact with the submarine.

An enquiry into the accident was carried out, led by the vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) General Guo Boxiong. The accident resulted in the dismissal of four senior PLAN officers, Navy Commander Shi Yunsheng, Political Commissar Yang Huaiqing, North Sea Fleet Commander Ding Yiping, and North Sea Fleet Political Commissar Chen Xianfeng on 13 June 2003 for “improper command and control”.

Ming Class Surfaced Near Japan Coast

The unidentified Type 035 submarine detected by JMSDF P-3C near Japanese waters

In November 2003, a PLAN Type 035 Ming class submarine intentionally surfaced in the vicinity of Japanese waters after a stealth drill, staging a show of the PLAN's ability to dodge Japan's reconnaissance and sending a warning to the United States, Japan and even Taiwan.

Around 8am on 12 November 2003, a Japanese Marine Self-Defence Force P-3C spotted a Chinese diesel-electric submarine heading west on the surface of international waters 25 miles east of Satamisaki, a port town of Kagoshima prefecture on Kyushu Island. The submarine, hoisting a PRC national flag, sailed through the Osumi Strait between Kyushu and Tanegashima, a tiny southern Japanese island. The information was confirmed by Chinese authorities the next day, when Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said the submarine's appearance in waters near Japan was "routine maritime training".

The submarine was discovered sailing westward, meaning that it was already on a return voyage from a secret mission before it deliberately floated up to the surface for detection. The unidentified Type 035 Ming class submarine may belong to the North Sea Fleet and its homeport is either in Qingdao or Lushun.