Echo

The current country/category metadata for this entry should be treated cautiously. Open sources identify Echo I and Echo II as Soviet nuclear-powered cruise-missile submarines, not Chinese SSBNs. GlobalSecurity and RussianShips both associate the class with Soviet Projects 659 and 675. The class was built in the Cold War as an SSGN/SSG platform to carry cruise missiles, especially for land-attack or anti-carrier roles depending on variant. The page content should therefore explain the actual Echo-class identity instead of reinforcing the incorrect SSBN label.

The Echo family comprised Project 659 Echo I and Project 675 Echo II submarines. Echo I carried P-5 cruise missiles, while Echo II introduced a larger anti-ship missile fit associated with the P-6 and later modernization paths. These submarines were nuclear powered but belonged to an early generation, with large missile containers and sensor arrangements that imposed operational limitations. Their design illustrates Soviet emphasis on long-range missile attack against shore targets and carrier groups before later submarines gained more capable submerged-launch weapons.

Operationally, Echo boats represented a major Soviet investment in submarine-launched cruise missile warfare during the 1960s and 1970s. Their mission was to threaten strategic shore targets or naval task groups at range, especially as NATO carrier forces became a central planning problem. Later submarines and missiles reduced the need for the Echo design, and all boats were eventually decommissioned. For HiWars readers, the class is useful as a bridge between first-generation nuclear submarines and later purpose-built Soviet SSGNs such as Charlie and Oscar.