Type 214 submarine
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| Type 214 attack submarine | |
|---|---|
| Class Overview | |
| Class Type | Attack Submarine |
| Class Name | Type 214 |
| Ships of the Class: | Papanikolis, Pipinos, Matrozos, Katsonis, Son Won-il |
The Type 214 is a diesel-electric submarine developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (HDW). It is based on features of the Type 212, but as the export version of the more advanced Type 212 submarine it lacks the non-magnetic hull (to avoid detection) and other classified technologies. Also Type 214 is more similar to the very successful Type 209 submarine, while Type 212 was an independent project of the German Navy with significant changes to Type 209.
Contract to build three boats for Hellenic Navy was signed 15 February 2000 and a fourth one was ordered in June 2002. The first boat was built at HDW in Kiel, Germany and the rest at the Hellenic Shipyards Co. in Skaramangas, Greece. The Hellenic Navy calls the class Papanikolis.
South Korea has ordered three Type 214 boats, to be built in Korea by Hyundai Heavy Industries, which will enter service from 2009. [1]
Due to improvements in the pressure hull materials type 214 can dive more than 250 m (officially).[1] The hull length is 65 m and displacement 1,700t. Four of the eight torpedo tubes will be capable of firing subharpoons (UGM-84, fitted with a solid-rocket launch booster and encapsulated in a container to enable submerged launch through a torpedo tube).
The Greek type 214 will be armed with the WASS (Whitehead Alenia Sistemi Subaquei) Black Shark heavyweight torpedo. The Black Shark is a dual purpose, wire-guided torpedo which is fitted with Astra active / passive acoustic head and a multi-target guidance and control unit incorporating a counter-countermeasures system. It has an electrical propulsion system based on a silver oxide and aluminium battery.
Type 214 use two Siemens PEM fuel cells which produce 120 kW per module and will give the submarine an underwater endurance of two weeks. The low noise propeller combine to decrease the submarine's acoustic signature.
The Integrated Sensor Underwater System ISUS 90, from ATLAS Elektronik integrates all sensors, command and control functions on board the submarine. BAE Systems provides the Link 11 tactical data link. The sensor suite of the U214 submarine consists of the sonar systems(Flank Array Sonar), an attack periscope and an optronic mast. The submarine's electronic support measures system and GPS(Global Positioning System) sensors are also installed on the optronic mast.
Type 214 can carry food, fresh water and fuel for 50 days of operation.
The Greece Papanikolis U214 class is equipped with a hoistable radar mast which does not penetrate the pressure hull of the submarine. In the top of the radar mast the radar transmitter is installed. This transmitter is part of the SPHINX Radar System supplied by Thales Defence Deutschland GmbH in Kiel. The radar sensor is a FMCW transceiver which can't be detected by ESM systems in medium terms. This technology is so called LPI radar, which means "Low probability of intercept". The transmitting power is lower than the power of a mobile phone but the resolution more precise compared to high power Pulse radar. Thales SPHINX radar is a tactical radar, designed for submarines.
The South Korean Son Won-il U214 class is equipped with a SPHINX-D Radar System supplied by Thales Defence Deutschland GmbH. It uses an additional pulse transmitter in the top of the mast. The combination of high power pulse radar and a very low power LPI transmitter is very effective for submarine. During surface operation the boat sails with an open pulse fingerprint for ESM systems, but within a secret mission the operator switches to LPI mode. The boat remains invisible for others.
Contents |
[edit] Ships
| Country | Pennant | Name | Laid down | Launch Date | Commission Date |
| Greece | S 120 | Papanikolis | 27 February 2001 | April 2004 | first half of 2007 |
| Greece | S 121 | Pipinos | February 2003 | November 2006 | July 2008 |
| Greece | S 122 | Matrozos | February 2004 | November 2007 | July 2009 |
| Greece | S 123 | Katsonis | 2005 | 2007 | July 2010 |
| South Korea | Sohn Won-il | June 2006 | |||
| South Korea | 2009 | ||||
| South Korea | 2009 |
[edit] General Characteristics
- Displacement: 1700 t surfaced / 1980 t submerged(GR) / 1860 t submerged(SK)
- Dimensions: length 65 m / beam 6.3 m / draft 6 m
- Pressure hull: austenitic steel
- Armament: 8 533 mm torpedo tubes, 4 subharpoon-capable
- Propulsion: low noise skew back propeller
- Diesel engines: 2 MTU 16V 396 (6.24 MW)(GR) / 1 MTU 16V 396 (3.12 MW)(SK)
- AIP system: 2 HDW PEM fuel cells (240 kW)(GR) / 9 HDW PEM fuel cells (306 kW)(SK)
- Electric motor: 1 Siemens Permasyn (2.85 MW)
- Speed: 12 kt surfaced / 20 kt submerged
- Speed on fuel cells: 2-6 kt estimated
- Range surfaced: 12000 miles
- Range submerged: 420 nm @ 8 kt
- Range on fuel cells: 1248 nm @ 4 kt
- Mission endurance: 12 weeks
- Submerged without snorkelling: 3 weeks
- Operating depth: more than 250 m officially, 400 m estimated
- Complement: 5 officers + 22 crew
[edit] Controversy
In December 11 2006, StrategyPage reported that the first Type 214 submarine to be delivered from Germany was found to have numerous technical problems [2]. Among the reported problems with the submarine were noise from the propellers, overheating with the fuel cells of the air-independent propulsion system, and excessive rolling in bad weather when travelling on the surface.
