Astute class
 HMS Astute
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The Astute class is the latest generation of nuclear submarines of the British Royal Navy . The Jagd-U-Boats (SSN) have been in service since 2010 and replace the Trafalgar- class from the 1980s. The acquisition of a total of seven submarines of this class is planned. Compared to its 30 years older predecessor, the "Astute" allows more weapons to be loaded, better encrypted communication and is more difficult to locate. The costs per ship are currently given at around € 1,300,000,000.
history
As early as the 1980s, the Royal Navy planned to replace its Swiftsure- class submarines in the foreseeable future . However, with the end of the Cold War , the Royal Navy's priorities also changed. While the original design provided for another hunting submarine to defend against Soviet submarines, what was needed now was a type of boat that should primarily support military operations around the globe. The attempt by Vickers Shipbuilding to build a modified version of the Trafalgar class for this purpose turned out to be too costly and inefficient. In 1997 BAE Naval Systems received the order to build a completely new type of submarine. The experience with the missile-carrying SSBNs of the Vanguard class and the now modernized Trafalgar class were used.
As part of the downsizing of the hunting submarine fleet from thirteen to seven submarines, it was decided in 2003 to withdraw the six boats of the Swiftsure class without replacement and to use the Astute class as a replacement for the seven units of the Trafalgar class.
On January 31, 2001, exactly 100 years after the keel-laying of the first British submarine, the Holland 1 , the keel-laying of the HMS Astute took place in Barrow-in-Furness . The launch took place on June 8, 2007, the Astute was baptized by Camilla Mountbatten-Windsor, Duchess of Cornwall . The commissioning took place on August 27, 2010.
Future of the project
The Royal Navy's original plans included the acquisition of seven Astute- class submarines . In 1997, however, only a first series with three submarines had been ordered; in May 2007, the contract for the fourth submarine was signed. The order for the fifth and sixth unit of the class was confirmed on March 25, 2010, whether the planned seventh submarine will also be built, was open for a long time. In the white paper published on October 19, 2010, the government confirmed the acquisition of seven Astute- class units .
construction
The Astute- class submarines are powered by a Rolls-Royce PWR2 pressurized water reactor . This is a slightly modernized version of the Vanguard- class reactor . The main advantage of this reactor, in addition to a higher speed and a quieter drive, is that it does not have to be refilled during the entire service life of the submarines thanks to the use of new fuel elements, the so-called "Core H". Refilling the reactors has been a lengthy and costly affair. A disadvantage of the reactor is that it actually for twice the ballistic submarines of the Vanguard was built class and therefore very occupies a lot of space. This is one of the reasons why the submarines Astute class, the largest ever in Europe built SSN will be.
The outer shell of the submarine is made of specially hardened steel (Q1N) and encased in sound-insulating rubber tiles. After a fire on the tower of the Astute , the tiles of this ship were coated with a special fire-resistant lacquer. In the boats of the class built subsequently, the tiles themselves are fireproof.
The submarines will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology for maritime surveillance and reconnaissance missions. The armament consists of a mix of torpedoes , anti-ship missiles and tomahawk cruise missiles . Contrary to the original plan, which provided for the use of Tomahawk Block III cruise missiles, the Royal Navy will now equip the submarines with the Tomahawk Block IV (Tactical Tomahawk). Overall, the submarines will be able to carry 50 percent more weapons than their predecessors.
costs
At the beginning of the development it was planned not to spend more than a billion pounds (approx. 1.5 billion euros ) per submarine . In the course of development, however, there were several problems and delays that drove up costs. According to official figures, the Royal Navy will now pay a total of £ 3.5 billion for the first three submarines. A budget of 2 billion pounds is currently estimated for the three submarines of the second series, as the development costs were allocated exclusively to the first three submarines. The budget for the seventh submarine is £ 680 million. This results in an average price of around £ 900 million per submarine, which is within the original budget.
units
| Identifier | Surname | Keel laying | Launch | Commissioning | Whereabouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S119 | HMS Astute | January 21, 2001 | June 8, 2007 | August 27, 2010 | active |
| S120 | HMS Ambush | October 22, 2003 | January 6, 2011 | 1st of March 2013 | active |
| S121 | HMS Artful | March 11, 2005 | 17th May 2014 | March 18, 2016 | active |
| S122 | HMS Audacious | March 24, 2009 | April 28, 2017 | (2021) | Sea trials |
| S123 | HMS Anson | October 14, 2011 | under construction | ||
| S124 | HMS Agamemnon | 18th July 2013 | under construction | ||
| S125 | HMS Agincourt | May 2018 | (2026) | under construction |
literature
- Ministry of Defense (Ed.): The Royal Navy Handbook . Conway Maritime Press, London 2003. ISBN 0-85177-952-2 .
Web links
- Official site of the Royal Navy on the Astute class (English)
- Official website of the Royal Navy on the Astute class ( Memento from July 12, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) (English, offers partly more detailed information than the new website)
- Navy Matters (English)
Footnotes
- ↑ UK Government Go-Ahead for Fifth and Sixth Astute Submarines ( Memento of July 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ HM Government: Securing Britain in an Age of Uncertainty: The Strategic Defense and Security Review ( Memento of the original dated December 22, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 800 kB) . London 2010, p. 21.
- ↑ Rolls-Royce: Design step-change propels Astute-class submarines (PDF file, English), August 25, 2006 ( Memento of December 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ Welding Astute-Class Submarines , accessed April 8, 2011.
- ^ Ministry of Defense: UK's most powerful submarine joins the Navy. Retrieved July 11, 2011 .
- ↑ UK Royal Navy commissions third Astute-class SSN, Janes, March 17, 2016 ( Memento of the original from March 29, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Royal Navy: Le quatrième Astute mis à l'eau. May 2, 2017. Retrieved May 2, 2017 .
- ↑ https://www.janes.com/article/95399/uk-astute-submarine-audacious-sets-sail-for-sea-trials. April 7, 2020, accessed April 8, 2020 .
- ↑ UK MoD awards contract for seventh and last Astute-class submarine. May 14, 2018, accessed May 14, 2018 .
- ↑ La Royal Navy reprend du poil de la bete. September 11, 2017, accessed on September 11, 2017 .
