The Barracuda class is a nuclear attack submarine, designed by the French shipbuilder Naval Group for the French Navy. It is intended to replace the s. Construction began in 2007 and the first unit will be commissioned in 2020.
History
In October 1998, the Delegation Générale pour l'Armement, the French government's defense procurement agency, established an integrated project team consisting of the Naval Staff, DCN, Technicatome and the Commissariat a l'Énergie Atomique, a regulatory body that oversees nuclear power plants, to oversee the design of a new attack submarine class. DCN was to be the boat's designer and builder while Technicatome was to be responsible for the nuclear power plant. The two companies were to act jointly as a single prime contractor to share the industrial risks, manage the schedules, and be responsible for the design's performance and costs, which at the time was estimated to be US$4.9 billion. On 22 December 2006, the French government placed a €7.9 billion order for six Barracuda submarines with Naval Group and their nuclearpower plants with Areva-Technicatome. According to the DGA “Competition at the subcontractor level will be open to foreign companies for the first time.” According to the contract, the first boat was to commence sea trials in early 2016, with delivery occurring in late 2016/early 2017. This was to be followed by entry into service in late 2017. Naval Group also designed a conventionally powered derivative, dubbed the SMX-Ocean, featuring fuel cells and vertical launchers. Another conventionally powered design, the Shortfin Barracuda, was selected as a future replacement for the vessels with the Royal Australian Navy. In 2016, Naval Group also began to position itself and its Shortfin Barracuda design to the Royal Canadian Navy's Future Canadian Submarines project. The project is planned to replace the s by 2030. Naval Group is also offering a version of the "Shortfin" diesel-electric variant as replacement for the current submarines of the Royal Netherlands Navy, competing against the A26 design by Saab and Damen.
Description
Barracudas will use technology from the, including pump-jet propulsion. This class reportedly produces approximately 1/1000 of the detectable noise of the Redoutable-class boats, and they are ten times more sensitive in detecting other submarines. They will be fitted with torpedo-tube-launched cruise missiles MDCN SCALP Naval for long-range strikes against strategic land targets. Their missions will include anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare, land attack, intelligence gathering, crisis management and special operations. The Barracuda class nuclear reactor incorporates several improvements over that of the preceding Rubis. Notably, it extends the time between refueling and complex overhauls from 7 to 10 years, enabling higher at-sea availability. In support of special operations missions, Barracudas may also accommodate up to 15 commandos, while carrying their equipment in a mobile pod attached aft of the sail.
Specifications
Designed by Naval Group and TechnicAtome, this submarine will have the following main general features:
Stealthiness.
Hull sonar, flank antennas, towed antenna, mine avoidance sonar designed by Thales.
Nemesis countermeasures, based on Naval Group's Contralto system, which applies a "confusion / dilution" principle and combines evasive maneuvers with the deployment of new Canto-S decoys that have been integrated on the Rubis since 2014.
Weaponry: 20 weapons in rack, plus 4 in tubes, with a mix of heavy torpedo F21, underwater-launched Exocet SM39 Block2 Mod2 anti-ship missiles of 50 km range, naval cruise missiles with a range of 1,000 km and mines FG29 - two per standard location - anti-aircraft missiles.
Third generation submarine propulsion carrying capacity, special operations mini-submarine.
Boats
Shortfin Barracuda conventional variant
Naval Group submitted a conventionally powered diesel-electric variation to the design – named the Shortfin Barracuda Block 1A – to the competitive evaluation process phase of Australia'sCollins-class submarine replacement. "While exact details remain confidential, DCNS can confirm the Shortfin Barracuda is over 90 metres in length and displaces more than 4,000 tons when dived," said Sean Costello, CEO of Naval Group Australia. Naval Group was chosen by the Australian Government on 26 April 2016 to build twelve of the Shortfin Barracuda Block 1A variant at a projected AU$50 billion. Much of the works will be undertaken at ASC Pty Ltd in Adelaide, South Australia. Construction is expected to begin in 2020 or 2021. The class will be known as the with the first vessel named HMAS Attack.
