On April 26, Pakistan Railway unveiled another sharp weapon - the first Kirin-class submarine exported by China to Pakistan was launched.
The Kirin-class submarine was launched
This type of submarine is a foreign trade weapon improved by China based on the Type 039B submarine, and Pakistan originally placed an order for eight submarines of this type from China, with a total value of about 5 billion US dollars.
Up to now, the launch of the first Kirin-class submarine is a new milestone in China-Pakistan arms trade.
The name of the Pakistani submarine
Speaking of this submarine, let's not talk about its performance data, its name alone is interesting.
China calls this type of submarine the "Kirin", and the Pakistani side calls it "Hangol".
The name "Qilin" is one of the four mythical beasts in Chinese legend, and it has a very different meaning in Chinese culture.
The mainland named this submarine "Kirin", which can also show that China attaches great importance to Pakistan's order.
Chinese 039B submarine
As for the name given by the Pakistani side, it is actually not simple.
HMS Hangol is the name of one of Pakistan's heroic submarines in the Third Indo-Pakistani War, which single-handedly rushed into the vicinity of Indian ports and faced the Indian Navy's encirclement and interception, sinking and damaging many Indian warships.
During the Third Indo-Pakistani War, the Hangol was ordered to enter the vicinity of Diu Harbour in the Bay of Mumbai in western India for surveillance and standby missions.
At that time, Pakistan's surface military strength was far inferior to that of the Indian Navy, so after a few days of war, Pakistan's surface military force suffered heavy losses. Because the submarine Hangol has been hiding underwater, it has escaped the blows of the Indian army.
By about 7 p.m. on December 9, 1971, two Blackwood-class frigates from the Indian side had left port for a new round of strikes against the Pakistani side.
Seeing the movements of the two Indian warships, the Hangol submarine was determined to retaliate, so the Hangol submarine fired several ECAN-E15 torpedoes at the two frigates.
One of the Indian frigates was penetrated in the side, and the torpedo crashed directly into the oil storage tank, causing a large explosion. The frigate sank at a fairly rapid pace, and the Indian troops on board could not even jump into the sea and escape, and all the more than 190 people on board died.
The other frigate did not suffer fatal injuries, but was heavily damaged in the tail and lost most of its power.
After sinking one frigate and damaging one frigate, the submarine Hangol also exposed its own position, and then faced a total blockade by the Indian Navy.
The aircraft carrier INS Vikrant (formerly the British Dignity class), which India was in great power in the war with Pakistan at that time, also withdrew from the Indo-Pakistani front line and withdrew to the island of Andaman far away from Pakistan for fear of being hit.
As a result, the Indian Navy did not find a single hair, and the Hangol submarine returned safely to Pakistani ports after nine days of engagement with the Indian Navy.
Therefore, in Pakistani culture, the name "Hangol" also has a special meaning, no less than the Chinese giving new weapons the names Dong Cunrui and Qiu Shaoyun.
Pakistan Navy
Pakistan's name for the warship sold to them by China is "Hangol", which can also show the importance and trust that Pakistan attaches to this weapon.
India's anti-submarine capabilities are weak
China's current sale of eight Kirin-class submarines to Pakistan illustrates two things. One is that India's anti-submarine capabilities are relatively poor, and the other is that China is now interested in blockading India.
On the first point, the fundamental reason why the Hangol submarine in the Third Indo-Pakistani War was able to achieve such great results and then retreat in its entirety was that India did not have a very good anti-submarine force.
Indian Navy
India doesn't even have the most basic towed sonar. You must know that some weapons may seem inconspicuous, but they are really not something that ordinary countries can handle.
Like the fixed-wing early warning aircraft, many people don't think about it, and pay attention to the fifth-generation fuselage like the J-20.
As a result, as soon as the Russian-Ukrainian conflict started, everyone found that even Russia did not have too advanced early warning aircraft, just a few old A-50 early warning aircraft produced by the Soviet Union, which had to maintain a front of thousands of kilometers.
Although India's navy is the largest in the world, its anti-submarine forces are quite weak, and until now it has not had very good anti-submarine means.
Indian fleet
Pakistan's purchase of eight submarines from China at one time shows that Pakistan will set submarines as the main development direction of its navy in the future.
This also shows that in Pakistan's view, India's anti-submarine forces can be defeated and cannot pose much of a threat to it.
China blockades India
On the second point, in fact, China is also deploying an "island chain" to India now. As early as more than 10 years ago, India was shouting about the threat of the "pearl island chain", that is, the ring of military bases deployed by China on India's doorstep.
However, it has not been successful in the past 10 years, and it has not been until after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine that there has been some results.
Today, China has leased the port of Kyaukpyu in Myanmar, Gwadar in Pakistan, and Hambantota in Sri Lanka.
Gwadar Port
Even the small country of Sri Lanka is no longer an "influence" of India, and the Indian garrison has been driven out, and no one believes that there is no impetus from some foreign powers.
From the perspective of international games, China does need to make moves in the direction of the Indian Ocean. Based on India's geopolitical situation, India is actually a natural maritime country.
When the United States withdraws from the Asia-Pacific region in the future, competition between China and India on the sea is bound to occur.
Therefore, China made a layout in advance, and it is also to weaken its competitors as much as possible in the future.
China's sale of submarines to Pakistan is a very typical example of the Han Dynasty's approach to the Xiongnu in the north and south, supporting the weaker side and suppressing the stronger side.
With eight submarines provided by China, Pakistan's military power has been greatly enhanced.
You must know that the total number of submarines in China is only about 80, and the number of new submarines in Pakistan is 1/10 of that of China.
And Russia and the United States are even less, Russia has less than 45 in service, including strategic nuclear submarines, and the United States has less than 70.
Although Pakistan's eight submarines are all conventionally powered submarines, the advantage of nuclear submarines is mainly in the ocean-going capability, which is not necessarily stronger than conventionally powered submarines in offshore waters.
Pakistan's submarine forces
So there are really a lot of Pakistani 8 submarines, and the deterrent effect on India is also quite obvious, I don't know if the Indian Navy will be unable to sleep again.
Resources:
[1] Observer.com, "Pakistan's First Submarine Ordered from China "Hanguo" Launched"
[2] Global Network • "Abu Dhabi Defense Exhibition China Military Industry Unveiled Model Unveiling (Picture)"