The CAPTAS-4 is a towed array sonar developed by Thales Underwater Systems to equip first-rank surface combatants. Manufactured in Brest, France, it represents the high-end and most powerful system of the company's CAPTAS (Combined Active and Passive Towed Array Sonar) line of products [1] and equips several first-rank warships of the French Navy as well as those of various export customers. A British variant, known as Sonar 2087, equips anti-submarine warfare frigates of the Royal Navy.
The CAPTAS-4 system comprises a UMS-4249 ultra-low-frequency active sonar with four ceramic rings, integrated into a towed variable-immersion body. [2] [3] Capable of diving up to 300 meters (980 ft), it covers a very large volume of water over an extremely long range. In addition to the UMS-4249 variable depth sonar, a towed multi-functional linear antenna equipped with hydrophones is used to capture radiated noise and reflected signals: it picks up the feedback of Very Low Frequency (VLF) emissions from the UMS-4249 to locate, classify and track a target, while at the same time providing passive detection that only listens when active sonars are not being used. It is also designed to detect the specific noise of torpedoes, providing an early warning to deploy countermeasures in the event of a submarine attack on the vessel. [2]
The great attribute of the CAPTAS-4, which separates the transmitting and receiving instruments, is its ability to detect submarines at long range (up to 150 km, 93 mi)— allowing the formation of a "safety bubble" around a carrier battle group for example— and instantly determine where the noise is coming from (port or starboard), which is an advantage on the high seas, but also in coastal areas, where the number of signals is very high. [2] [3] Thanks to variable immersion, the sonar can be positioned at the best spot to avoid the non-detection troughs that form in the sea as a function of temperature, salinity and water pressure; troughs where submarines can hide. [2]
The CAPTAS-4 equips the French, Italian, Egyptian and Moroccan FREMM frigates, Spanish F110 frigates, and was ultimately selected by the US Navy to equip the Constellation-class frigates after initially favoring a rival system — the DART (Dual-mode Array Transmitter) — whose development had been entrusted by Raytheon but whose performance failed to live up to expectations. [1] [4] [2] [3]
Manufactured at various Thales Underwater Systems' sites in the United Kingdom, the Sonar 2087 is a British variant of the CAPTAS-4. It equips the Royal Navy's Type 23 frigates and will also be integrated on the succeeding Type 26 frigates in construction.
The CAPTAS-4 compact has been developed to maintain the same detection performance as the CAPTAS-4, while reducing its overall weight by 20% and its footprint by almost 50%. [5] [6] This allows medium-size first-rank frigate such as the 4,000-ton French FDI to have the same collaborative anti-submarine warfare capabilities as larger frigates and destroyers. The CAPTAS-4 Compact can also be containerized, making it the only sonar in its class interchangeable from one vessel to another according to Thales. [5] The new system will equip the French FDI frigates expected to enter operational service in 2025 as well as those purchased by Greece. [6]
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect objects on or under the surface of the water, such as other vessels.
The Type 23 frigate or Duke class is a class of frigates built for the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. The ships are named after British Dukes, thus leading to the class being commonly known as the Duke class. The first Type 23, HMS Norfolk, was commissioned in 1989, and the sixteenth, HMS St Albans was commissioned in June 2002. They form the core of the Royal Navy's destroyer and frigate fleet and serve alongside the Type 45 destroyers. They were designed for anti-submarine warfare, but have been used for a range of uses. Nine Type 23 frigates remain in service with the Royal Navy, with three vessels having been sold to the Chilean Navy and four being retired since 2021.
A sonobuoy is a small expendable sonar buoy dropped from aircraft or ships for anti-submarine warfare or underwater acoustic research. Sonobuoys are typically around 13 cm (5 in) in diameter and 91 cm (3 ft) long. When floating on the water, sonobuoys have both a radio transmitter above the surface and hydrophone sensors underwater.
The Georges Leygues class was a class of anti-submarine destroyers of the French Navy. They were multi-role ships due to their Exocet and Crotale missile armament, making them especially suitable for the defence of strategic positions, show of force operations, or as high seas escorts. The design was initially officially known as a "corvette" with the designation C70, but were internationally labelled an "anti-submarine destroyer". Subsequently, the French referred to the ships as "frigates" with the designation F70.
The FREMM, which stands for "European multi-purpose frigate", is a Franco-Italian family of multi-purpose frigates designed by Naval Group and Fincantieri. In France, this surface combatant is known as the "Aquitaine class", while in Italy it is known as the "Bergamini class". The lead ship of the class, Aquitaine, was commissioned in November 2012 by the French Navy. Italy has ordered six general purpose and four anti-submarine variants. France, on the other hand, has ordered six anti-submarine variants and two air-defense ones.
The Sonar 2087 is a towed array sonar developed by Thales Underwater Systems (TUS). Manufactured in the United Kingdom, it is the British variant of the company's CAPTAS-4 manufactured in Brest, France, and part of its CAPTAS line of products. The Sonar 2087 replaced the older Sonar 2031 in the Royal Navy and equips eight Type 23 frigates. It is also expected to equip the Royal Navy's Type 26 frigates currently in production. The S2087 is also fitted on Chilean Type 23 frigates acquired from the Royal Navy.
Thales Underwater Systems or TUS is a subsidiary of the French defense electronics specialist Thales Group. It was founded in 2001 and belongs to its naval division. It specializes in the development and manufacturing of sonar systems for submarines, surface warships and aircraft, as well as communications masts and systems for submarines. Its headquarters are located in Sophia Antipolis, France.
A towed array sonar is a system of hydrophones towed behind a submarine or a surface ship on a cable. Trailing the hydrophones behind the vessel, on a cable that can be kilometers long, keeps the array's sensors away from the ship's own noise sources, greatly improving its signal-to-noise ratio, and hence the effectiveness of detecting and tracking faint contacts, such as quiet, low noise-emitting submarine threats, or seismic signals.
The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) is the naval branch of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the armed forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLAN force consists of approximately 250,000 men and over a hundred major combat vessels, organized into three fleets: the North Sea Fleet, the East Sea Fleet, and the South Sea Fleet.
The AN/UQQ-2 Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System (SURTASS), colloquially referred to as the ship's "Tail", is a towed array sonar system of the United States Navy.
Geophysical MASINT is a branch of Measurement and Signature Intelligence (MASINT) that involves phenomena transmitted through the earth and manmade structures including emitted or reflected sounds, pressure waves, vibrations, and magnetic field or ionosphere disturbances.
Sonar 2076 is a submarine sonar detection system designed by Thales for the Royal Navy.
The Frégate de Défense et d'Intervention or FDI, formerly denominated Frégate de Taille Intermédiaire or FTI, is a programme launched in 2015 to produce a new class of first-rank French frigates to complement the Aquitaine-class. As of February 2022, five ships have been ordered for the French Navy and will form the "Amiral Ronarc'h class", with the lead ship expected to be commissioned in 2025. In 2021, three units were ordered by Greece for the Hellenic Navy and will form the Kimon class.
Low Frequency Analyzer and Recorder and Low Frequency Analysis and Recording (LOFAR) are the equipment and process respectively for presenting a visual spectrum representation of low frequency sounds in a time–frequency analysis. The process was originally applied to fixed surveillance passive antisubmarine sonar systems and later to sonobuoy and other systems. Originally the analysis was electromechanical and the display was produced on electrostatic recording paper, a Lofargram, with stronger frequencies presented as lines against background noise. The analysis migrated to digital and both analysis and display were digital after a major system consolidation into centralized processing centers during the 1990s.
KRI Raden Eddy Martadinata (331) is the lead ship of the Martadinata-class frigates of the Indonesian Navy.
KRI I Gusti Ngurah Rai (332) is the second ship of the Martadinata-class frigate of the Indonesian Navy.
Tarik Ben Ziyad (613) is a SIGMA 10513 frigate of the Royal Moroccan Navy. The ship is the first of three SIGMA multi-mission frigates ordered by Morocco from Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding, entering service in 2011.
Sultan Moulay Ismail (614) is a SIGMA 9813 frigate of the Royal Moroccan Navy. The ship is the second of three SIGMA multi-mission frigates ordered by Morocco from Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding, entering service in 2012.
Allal Ben Abdellah (615) is a SIGMA 9813 frigate of the Royal Moroccan Navy. The ship is the last of three SIGMA multi-mission frigates ordered by Morocco from Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding, entering service in 2012.
Amiral Ronarc'h (D660) is the lead ship of Frégate de défense et d'intervention of the French Navy.
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