By Stelios Kanavakis - Senior Defence Analyst
The Hellenic Navy issued on the 25th of May a request for information for the procurement of heavyweight torpedoes for its Type 214 and the upgraded Type 209 AIP «Okeanos» submarines, as well as the engineering work required for their integration with the ISUS 90-15 and ISUS 90-46 combat management systems. The information provided will be used to define the technical specifications of the tender.
HN Matrozos (S-122) at the island of Megisti (File Photo: Hellenic Navy)
According to the Hellenic Navy, the torpedoes must be:
· Of twin role (against surface and submarine units);
· Self-guided with active or passive or both active/passive locating capabilities;
· Guided through a communications connection;
· Equiped with a approach or contact fuse;
· Capable of being launched from more than 400 m. of depth;
· Capable of maximum speed above 50 kts.;
· Capable of adapting its speed and depth during the redirection/attack phases;
· Capable of tracking stationary surface and submarine units;
· Capable of recognizing and facing decoys;
· Of a setup that will protect the launching submarine;
· With battery cells that will provide at least 50 guaranteed charging/discharging cycles; And,
· The training torpedoes must have the capability of recording in detail its behaviour and storing all the elements that are necessary to analyze the pathway, as well as have an integrated light source and Noise Maker to pinpoint its position.
Companies are also asked to submit their proposals and the engineering work details required for the integration of the torpedoes into the combat management systems of the submarines.
The deadline for the submission of the information is Monday 16th of July 2018.
Additional comment by Navy Recognition:
The contenders will likely include Atlas Elektronik with the DM2A4 Seahake Mod4, Naval Group with the F21 and Leonardo (ex-WASS) with the Black Shark.
