Agosta class (1977)
Ouessant in Brest after reactivation in 2005
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The Agosta class (A 90) is a submarine class built in France. The boats are the last French conventional diesel-electric powered submarines to date . The submarines were used by the French Navy until 2001 . To date (2006) they are operated by both the Pakistani and Spanish navies . In addition to two older submarines of the class, Pakistan uses a modernized design and last put into service in 2006 a boat of the class that was built independently in its own country. In addition, the Malaysian Navy uses an ex-French boat as a training and test vehicle.
Details
The class was developed in the late 1960s as the successor to the Daphné class , and the construction of the individual boats was approved between 1970 and 1975. Even in the construction phase, the class was used as the basis for the construction of the French nuclear hunting submarines of the Rubis class . The first submarine of the class put into service was the Agosta in 1977 . Between 1977 and 1978 three more submarines were put into service with the French Navy. The La Praya , which went into service in 1978, was equipped with a small submersible vehicle for special operations. The Narval (S 631), type ship of the Narval class , which was decommissioned in 1986 , also carried a small underwater vehicle behind the tower .
The first foreign customer was the South African Navy , which ordered two boats in the mid-1970s. In 1977 the United Nations decided on an arms embargo against the apartheid state. The two submarines were therefore not delivered to South Africa, but sold to Pakistan and put into service by the Pakistani Navy in 1979 and 1980, respectively.
The second foreign buyer is Spain. Between 1983 and 1985 four than in Spain were under license made Agosta class submarines into service.
In the 1980s, the submarines were modernized and made capable of underwater launching anti-ship missiles from the torpedo tubes. While the French decided to use SM.39 Exocet from their own production, the Pakistani Navy uses the US UGM-84 Harpoon .
In 1994, the Pakistani Navy ordered three more submarines of the modernized A 90B version . The boats are slightly larger than in the original design. They are also faster, can dive deeper by using newer materials and are equipped with more modern electronics. The higher degree of automation enables the crew to be reduced from 54 to 36 men. One boat was completed in France, the other two built under license at a Pakistani shipyard. The last of the two boats built in Pakistan, the Hamza (S 139), was built entirely in-house without French support.
In one of the submarines built in Pakistan, the use of a largely air-independent propulsion system is being tested. The construction, known as Module d'Energie Sous-Marin Autonome (MESMA), consists of a steam-powered turbine. Ethanol and liquid oxygen serve as fuel. The drive should ensure a three to four times greater underwater range than the pure accumulator drive. In the event of a successful test, a corresponding conversion of the other Pakistani submarines is planned.
The four submarines of the French Navy were decommissioned by 2001. They were the last conventional submarines in France. Since then, the French Navy has only used nuclear submarines .
In 2005 one of the decommissioned French boats was reactivated. As part of the procurement of from Agosta developed class Scorphène class Malaysia leased this boat to collect already before the scheduled 2009 deployment of the new class experiences in the use of submarines and to train crews.
The remaining four Spanish and five Pakistani Agosta-class submarines were in active service in 2006.
Units and whereabouts
- Marine national
As the developer of the Agosta class, France built four submarines at the Arsenal de Cherbourg in Cherbourg . All French boats in the class have since been decommissioned. One was leased to Malaysia and has been preserved there as a museum.
| Identifier | Surname | Keel laying | Launch | Commissioning | unit | Decommissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S 620 | Agosta | November 10, 1972 | 19th October 1974 | July 28, 1977 | ? | October 28, 1997 | scrapped? |
| S 621 | Bévéziers | 17th May 1973 | June 14, 1975 | September 27, 1977 | ? | April 3, 1998 | scrapped? |
| S 622 | La Praya | 1974 | May 15, 1976 | March 9, 1978 | ? | July 1, 2000 | Hulk Q 835, scrapped? |
| S 623 | Ouessant | 1974 | October 23, 1976 | July 23, 1978 | ? | July 13, 2001 | Leased to Malaysia in 2005. |
- Pakistani Navy (Pɑkistan Bahri'a)
Pakistan bought two Agosta- class boats that were originally built for South Africa at AC Dubigeon in Nantes , but were not delivered due to an arms embargo. Pakistan also bought three more modern A-90B boats, which were built under license almost twenty years later in both France and Pakistan. This means that Pakistan operates the largest fleet of Agosta- class submarines . The traditional base of the Pakistani submarine fleet is Karachi . However, the relocation of the submarines to the new Jinnah base near Ormara is planned.
| Identifier | Surname | Shipyard | Keel laying | Launch | Commissioning | unit | Decommissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P. 135 |
Hashmat ex Astrant , 
|
AC Dubigeon in Nantes | ? | ? | 1979 | ? in Karachi | active | |
| P. 136 |
Hurmat ex Adventurous ,
|
AC Dubigeon in Nantes | ? | ? | 1980 | ? in Karachi | active | |
| P. 137 | Khalid | DCN in Cherbourg | ? | ? | 1999 | ? in Karachi | active | |
| P. 138 | Saad | Karachi Shipyard in Karachi | ? | ? | 2002 | ? in Karachi | active | |
| P. 139 | Hamza | Karachi Shipyard in Karachi | ? | ? | August 14, 2006 | ? in Karachi | active |
- Spanish Navy (Armada Española)
The four Spanish Galerna- class submarines were built at Navantia in Cartagena and are currently (2010 to 2013) being modernized with the exception of boat two, which is to be sold:
| Identifier | Surname | Keel laying | Launch | Commissioning | unit | Decommissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P 71 | Galerna | ? | ? | 1983 | ? in Cartagena | active | |
| P 72 | Siroco | ? | ? | 1983 | ? in Cartagena | June 29, 2012 | ? |
| P. 73 | mistral | ? | ? | 1985 | ? in Cartagena | active | |
| P. 74 | Tramontana | ? | ? | 1985 | ? in Cartagena | active |
- Royal Malaysian Navy (Tentera Laut DiRaja Malaysia)
The Royal Malaysian Navy had leased a formerly French Agosta- class submarine for the purpose of training submarine crews prior to the commissioning of the new Scorpène-class boats built in France . This boat is preserved as a museum in Malacca .
| Identifier | Surname | Formerly | Commissioning | unit | Decommissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | Ouessant | Ouessant, 
|
2005 | ? | 2009 | since 2011 museum in Malacca |
See also
literature
- Chris Chant: Modern Submarines Engineering Tactics Armament. Motorbuchverlag, Stuttgart, 1st edition 2005, ISBN 3-7276-7150-5 .
- Werner Globke (Ed.): Weyers Flottentaschenbuch / Warships of the World - Fleet Handbook. Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Bonn, 66th year 2005–2007, ISBN 3-7637-4517-3 .
Web links
- Naval Technology (English)
- AGOSTA 90B ( Memento from February 6, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) (English)
Footnotes
- ↑ The French metric 550 mm standard can be converted to the internationally widespread 533 mm (21 inch ) standard using plug-in adapters.
- ↑ The class should not use the same name in the Second World War used Agosta class be confused.
- ↑ www.bernama.com - First-Time Submariners, But Adapting Well ( Memento from June 7, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) ( Eng. )
- ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Sous-marin Agosta. netmarine.net, 2012, accessed December 31, 2015 (French).