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Frag Out! Magazine #29

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Submarines FLOSUB (Flotilla de Submarinos) seems to be lacking attention the most, also facing the most significant problems. The component in- cludes three S-70 Galerna (1983-1986) subs, a Spanish derivative of the Agosta-class vessels: Galerna, Tramontana, and Mistral. The Mistral is expected to be decommissioned in mid-2020. Sirocco was withdrawn in 2012. This fact has been caused by the expected early introduction of the S-80 submarine which, ultimately, did not happen. Galerna-class submarines had a design lifetime of 3 decades. As delays occurred in the S-80 program, a decision was made to extend the life cycle of those vessels. After consultations involving DCNS (currently - the Naval Group), the manufacturer of the submarines, and after the technical conditions of the submarines was assessed, a decision was made to carry out another overhaul of those vessels. The work is being performed at Navantia's shipyard in Cartagena. Two vessels are under- going the overhauls. The work is to make it possible to keep them in service until the first two, new submarines are introduced. The S-80 design dates back to the 1990s. Navantia developed the Scorpene-class submarines in collaboration with DCNS. The original assumption was to develop a submarine that would replace the older vessels in its own fleet (building new submarines was one of the items included in ALTAMAR), that could also be offered on the export market. Scorpene has been a major export success, as these submarines have been acquired by Chile, India, and Malaysia. However, the vessel also became a point of conflict in the consortium. After the assumptions adopted with regards to the new submarines were defined, the Span- ish Navy decided to procure submarines with capabilities reaching be- yond what was offered by Scorpene developed with the export market in mind. Furthermore, the electronic equipment was to be imported from the US, not from France. These matters led to tensions, and then, ultimately, to the dissolution of the consortium in 1996. The Spanish government faced a necessity to take a decision on the selection of a new partner or to continue the work independently. Ultimately, the latter solution was selected. The conceptual effort was launched in 1997. The initial assumption was to acquire modern, medium-sized submarines with combined diesel-electric propulsion. The submarine was to be armed, primarily, with "conventional" heavy torpedoes and mines. This meant that the Galerna-class vessels would get direct re- placements. Back in 2002, the requirements were redefined to a major extent. The technological advancements made in the area of AIP solu- tions that have become much more common as well, saw the Spanish fleet desire submarines capable of staying submerged for longer peri- ods. Thus, the new propulsion system was listed among the require- ments. Another important reason was the fact that the Armed Forces expressed the necessity to acquire a capability to strike land targets at long distances. This, on the other hand, resulted in a concept of arming the new submarines with the Tomahawk missiles. The government decided to build 8 submarines in two lots, as late as in 2003, with the design works completed in 2004. The agreement was signed then, concerning the first four submarines, by and between the Spanish MoD and Navantia. Back in 2005, work began on the first vessel, work on the second one commenced in 2007, and another two vessels started to take on their form in 2009 and 2010. Initial- ly, the data on how the program progressed suggested that the work would be finalized on time. According to the schedule adopted, the first submarine was to be commissioned in 2017. A radical change took place in 2013. A significant error was found in the design, resulting in 75-tonnes overload. To solve the problem Navantia had to seek technical advice with a foreign partner - the General Electric Boat shipyard, involved in the orig- inal Scorpene program. The analysis has shown that the problem may only be re- solved through the extension of the subma- rine's length by more than 10 meters, which would also entail serious delays. The initial, yet optimistic estimates only mentioned one year of delay for the first submarine, and ex- tra cost in an amount of only 200 million dol- lars. However, both these matters, namely the delay and the costs, have been a source of doubts since the very start of the project. As it turned out, the doubts had some solid foundation. In 2018 the Spanish MoD signed an annex to the agreement with Navantia, accounting for the increase in the cost of the program, from the level of EUR 2.135 bn. up to EUR 3.685 bn. The amount above, however, would be higher, as it does not in- clude the cost of overhauls associated with the currently operated S-70 submarines. It is estimated that keeping those in service until the replacements are commissioned would cost more than 250 million euros. The redesigned S-80 Plus will be relatively large and capable of operating on the Oceanic waters. Displacement on the surface is said to reach 3,200 t, and to go up to 3,700 t when submerged. The vessels would be 81 m long and they would also fea- ture conventional propulsion. The crew number is to be reduced to 32, thanks to automation. It is possible to embark eight additional persons with equipment such as SOF operators. They can leave the boat via a trunk that can accommodate 4 persons at once. Navantia is working on a dry cargo space that can be used to carry the equipment for the embarked operators, and that could be mounted on the top of the sub- marine. The crew, along with the additionally embarked personnel, is to have stores available that would allow for 50 days of operations at sea. The submarines would also receive a 300 kW UTC Power fuel cell AIP module. The whole system would be configured like the one we know from the German Type 212 and Type 214. The difference, in the case of the Spanish design, stems from the fact that the vessels would not www.fragoutmag.com

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