Suffren at Cape Brun off Toulon on 26 July 2020 | |
History | |
---|---|
France | |
Name | Suffren |
Namesake | Admiral comte Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez, bailli de Suffren |
Builder | Naval Group |
Laid down | 19 December 2007 |
Launched | 1 August 2019 |
Commissioned | 6 November 2020 [1] |
In service | 3 June 2022 [2] |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Suffren-class submarine |
Displacement |
|
Length | 99.5 m (326 ft 5 in) |
Beam | 8.8 m (28 ft 10 in) |
Draught | 7.3 m (23 ft 11 in) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed |
|
Range | Unlimited |
Endurance | 70 days of food [3] |
Complement |
|
Sensors and processing systems |
|
Armament |
|
Suffren (Q284/S635) [6] is a French nuclear attack submarine. It is the lead ship of the Suffren class, stemming from the Barracuda programme. The vessel was laid down on 19 December 2007 and launched on 1 August 2019 at Cherbourg. It was commissioned on 6 November 2020; [7] while full operational service had originally been anticipated in 2021, this was pushed back into 2022 after further testing/trials by the French Navy. [8] Pursuant to testing the submarine was then declared fully operational on 3 June 2022. [9]
Unlike previous French submarines, Suffren is not equipped with a periscope, but rather an optronic mast, [10] which allows for much longer range and outside visible spectrum detection of targets.[ citation needed ]
A first for the French Navy is the ability to deploy a small underwater vehicle for special forces use (similar to the US Navy ASDS) thanks to a dry deck shelter. [3] Previously special forces used torpedo tubes and handheld propulsion systems.
The vessel also has the ability to use the MdCN ground attack cruise missile in its submarine-borne version, launched via torpedo tube.[ citation needed ]
It is said to be ten times quieter than the previous generation Rubis-class nuclear attack submarine. [10]
Suffren is optimized for a small complement thanks to extensive automation throughout the ship. While being twice the size, it has a smaller crew than the preceding Rubis class. This combined larger hull and smaller crew compared to the Rubis class makes this ship the first French submarine to be designed to allow women on board. It has spacious separate living quarters for men and women. [10]
The submarine was unveiled to the public on 12 July 2019 in Cherbourg, with a three-year delay, in front of French President Emmanuel Macron and Defense Minister Florence Parly. The K15[ clarification needed ] nuclear reactor came online on 18 December 2019. Sea trials started in 2020. The submarine was commissioned on 6 November 2020 and became fully operational on 3 June 2022. [11]
From July to October 2023, the submarine operated in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf for three months, accompanied for part of its deployment by the frigate Languedoc. [12]
An attack submarine or hunter-killer submarine is a submarine specifically designed for the purpose of attacking and sinking other submarines, surface combatants and merchant vessels. In the Soviet and Russian navies they were and are called "multi-purpose submarines". They are also used to protect friendly surface combatants and missile submarines. Some attack subs are also armed with cruise missiles, increasing the scope of their potential missions to include land targets.
Naval Group is a major French industrial group specializing in naval defense design, development and construction. Its headquarters are located in Paris.
The La Fayette class is a class of general purpose frigates built by DCNS in the 1980s/90s and still operated by the French Navy today. Derivatives of the type are in service in the navies of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Taiwan.
The Barracuda class is a class of nuclear attack submarines, designed by the French shipbuilder Naval Group for the French Navy. It is intended to replace the Rubis-class submarines. Construction began in 2007 and the first unit was commissioned on 6 November 2020. The lead boat of the class, Suffren, entered service on 3 June 2022.
The Rubis class is a class of nuclear-powered attack submarines operated by the French Navy. It comprises six boats, the first entering service in 1983 and the last in 1993. Two additional units originally planned were cancelled as a result of post-Cold War budget cuts. All six submarines of the Rubis class are based at Toulon and are part of the Escadrille de sous-marins nucléaires d'attaque. Smaller than contemporary designs of other major world navies, the Rubis class shares many of its system designs with the conventionally-powered Agosta class. In the late 1980s, the Rubis class was proposed to Canada in the context of their plan to acquire nuclear-powered submarines.
Le Rubis, initially named Provence, was a first-generation nuclear attack submarine and lead boat of the Rubis class of the French Navy, assigned to the attack nuclear submarine squadron.
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The Submarine Forces of France are one of the four main components of the French Navy. The force oversees all French submarines regardless of role.
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The SNLE 3G is a class of submarines under development for the French Navy's nuclear deterrent, part of the Force de dissuasion. It is being designed as a replacement for the current Triomphant class beginning around 2035, and could remain in service to as late as 2090. Steel was cut on the first vessel in the class in March 2024.
The Missile de Croisière Naval (MdCN), meaning Naval Cruise Missile, is a French turbojet-powered subsonic cruise missile intended for ship and submarine-based land-attack operations. Originally dubbed SCALP Naval, the program arose out of a requirement issued by the French Ministry of Defence for a more potent cruise missile capable of striking strategic and military targets from extended stand-off ranges in order to complement the air-launched SCALP-EG/Storm Shadow.