The Type 039A / Yuan-class is a Chinese diesel-electric attack submarine family with air-independent propulsion, built for the People's Liberation Army Navy and tracked in open sources as the Type 039A/B line with later Yuan-family variants. U.S. defense reporting counts the class among China's ASCM-capable conventional submarines, while specialist sources caution that older Type 041 naming and later Type 039C labels are open-source conventions rather than clean public PLAN designations.
The Yuan-class record stays relationship-only because this pass found no direct source tying the exact class to a cataloged armed conflict. Its value here is as a sourced PLAN submarine-family page linking the Song predecessor, later Yuan-family variants, export derivatives, and carried missile context.
DoD and NTI describe Yuan boats as diesel-electric attack submarines with air-independent propulsion, and DoD counts the class among China's ASCM-capable conventional submarines.
Type 039A/B is the cleanest official-reporting frame in current U.S. sources; Type 039C and historical Type 041 usage are best treated as open-source labels with ambiguity.
Thailand's S26T and Pakistan's Hangor-class programs are reported as Yuan-family export derivatives, but they remain unlinked here until separate public records are created.
Open sources use Yuan class for the Type 039A/B family, while Type 039C is common observer shorthand for a later chined-sail Yuan-family boat. The older Type 041 label is retained as an alias with caveat because recent sources also use Type 041 for a separate Chinese submarine program.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
 | Serial Yuan-family PLAN AIP variant | GlobalSecurity describes Type 039B as a revised Yuan variant, and U.S. reporting groups delivered Yuan-class AIP submarines as Type 039A/B. Sources: Yuan Type 039B SSP, 2024 China Military Power Report |
 | Later Yuan-family variant with faceted sail | Naval News and Covert Shores identify the later boat as a Yuan-family Type 039C in open-source usage, with an angled sail and reported towed-array sonar. Sources: Naval News: China's Newest Attack Submarine Now Stationed Near Taiwan, Covert Shores: Chinese Navy's Latest Type-039C Yuan Class |
| S26T | Thailand export derivative | Defense News describes Thailand's S26T as an export version of the Type 039A/Yuan class. |
| Hangor class | Pakistan export derivative | Defense News reports Pakistan's Hangor II as based on Type 039A/B Yuan-class boats and describes Pakistani framing of it as a Type 039B variant with Stirling AIP. Sources: China launches Pakistan's Hangor submarine, despite engine row with Germany |
Open Yuan-class specifications identify tube-launched anti-ship missile carriage alongside torpedoes.
| Ammunition | Ammunition type | Firing evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | Anti-ship cruise missile | GlobalSecurity's Yuan specifications list six 533 mm torpedo tubes carrying torpedoes or YJ-83/C-803 anti-ship cruise missiles. |
Covert Shores notes that the Type 039A Yuan class first appeared at a Chinese shipyard in 2006, marking a more modern follow-on to the Song-class line.
Sources: Covert Shores: Chinese Navy's Latest Type-039C Yuan Class
Naval News reported that a new Yuan-family boat, commonly identified in open sources as Type 039C, was first seen in May 2021.
Sources: Naval News: China's Newest Attack Submarine Now Stationed Near Taiwan
The 2024 China Military Power Report said PRC shipyards had delivered 21 Yuan-class Type 039A/B diesel-electric AIP attack submarines and expected at least 25 by 2025.
Sources: 2024 China Military Power Report
