The Royal Norwegian Navy ( no, Sjøforsvaret, , Sea defence) is the branch of the

Norwegian Armed Forces The Norwegian Armed Forces ( no, Forsvaret, , The Defence) is the military organization responsible for the defence of Norway. It consists of five branches, the Norwegian Army, the Royal Norwegian Navy, which includes the Coast Guard, the Royal ...

responsible for

naval A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

operations of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. , the Royal Norwegian Navy consists of approximately 3,700 personnel (9,450 in mobilized state, 32,000 when fully mobilized) and 70 vessels, including 4 heavy

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

s, 6

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

s, 14

patrol boat A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and the ...

s, 4

minesweepers A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

, 4

minehunter A minehunter is a naval vessel that seeks, detects, and destroys individual naval mines. Minesweepers, on the other hand, clear mined areas as a whole, without prior detection of mines. A vessel that combines both of these roles is known as a ...

s, 1 mine detection vessel, 4 support vessels and 2 training vessels. It also includes the

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

. This navy has a history dating back to 955. From 1509 to 1814, it formed part of the navy of Denmark-Norway, also referred to as the "Common Fleet". Since 1814, the Royal Norwegian Navy has again existed as a separate navy. In Norwegian, all its naval vessels since 1946 bear

ship prefix A ship prefix is a combination of letters, usually abbreviations, used in front of the name of a civilian or naval ship that has historically served numerous purposes, such as identifying the vessel's mode of propulsion, purpose, or ownership/n ...

"KNM", Kongelig Norske Marine (which accurately translates to Royal Norwegian Navy/Naval vessel). In

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, they are permitted still to be ascribed prefix "HNoMS", meaning "His/Her Norwegian Majesty's Ship" ("HNMS" could be also used for the

Royal Netherlands Navy The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...

, for which "HNLMS" is used instead). Coast Guard vessels are given the prefix "KV" for ''K''yst''V''akt (Coast Guard) in

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

and permissibly, and less ambiguously in English, are styled "NoCGV", Norwegian Coast Guard Vessel. __TOC__

History

The history of Norwegian state-operated naval forces is long, and goes back to the

leidang The institution known as ''leiðangr'' (Old Norse), ''leidang'' (Norwegian), ''leding'' (Danish), ''ledung'' (Swedish), ''expeditio'' (Latin) or sometimes lething (English), was a form of conscription ( mass levy) to organize coastal fleets for seas ...

which was first established by King

Håkon the Good Haakon Haraldsson (c. 920–961), also Haakon the Good (Old Norse: ''Hákon góði'', Norwegian: ''Håkon den gode'') and Haakon Adalsteinfostre (Old Norse: ''Hákon Aðalsteinsfóstri'', Norwegian: ''Håkon Adalsteinsfostre''), was the king of ...

at the

Gulating Gulating ( non, Gulaþing) was one of the first Norwegian legislative assemblies, or '' things,'' and also the name of a present-day law court of western Norway. The practice of periodic regional assemblies predates recorded history, and was fi ...

in 955, although variants of the Leidang had at that time already existed for hundreds of years. During the last part of the Middle Ages the system of levying of ships, equipment, and manpower for the leidang was mainly used to levying tax and existed as such into the 17th Century. During most of the union between Norway and

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

the two countries had a common fleet. This fleet was established by

King Hans John (Danish language, Danish, Norwegian language, Norwegian and sv, Hans; né ''Johannes'') (2 February 1455 – 20 February 1513) was a Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union. He was king of Kingdom of Denmark, Denmark (1481–1513 ...

in 1509 in Denmark. A large proportion of the crew and officers in this new Navy organisation were Norwegian. In 1709 there were about 15,000 personnel enrolled in the common fleet; of these 10,000 were Norwegian. When

Tordenskjold Peter Jansen Wessel Tordenskiold (28 October 1690 – 12 November 1720), commonly referred to as Tordenskjold (), was a Norwegian nobleman and flag officer who spent his career in the service of the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy. He rose to the rank ...

carried out his famous raid at Dynekil in 1716 more than 80 percent of the sailors and 90 percent of the soldiers in his force were Norwegian. Because of this the Royal Norwegian Navy shares its history from 1509 to 1814 with the

Royal Danish Navy The Royal Danish Navy ( da, Søværnet) is the Naval warfare, sea-based branch of the Danish Defence force. The RDN is mainly responsible for maritime defence and maintaining the sovereignty of Denmark, Danish territorial waters (incl. Faroe Isla ...

. The modern, separate Royal Norwegian Navy was founded (restructured) on April 12, 1814, by Prince Christian Fredrik on the remnants of the Dano-Norwegian Navy. At the time of separation, the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy was in a poor state and Norway was left with the lesser share. All officers of Danish birth were ordered to return to Denmark and the first commander of the Norwegian navy became Captain Thomas Fasting. It then consisted of 39 officers, seven

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...

s (one more under construction), one schooner-brig, eight gun

schooners A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

, 46 gun chalups and 51 gun barges. April 1, 1815, the Royal Norwegian Navy's leadership was reorganized into a navy ministry, and Fasting became the first navy minister. Norway retained its independent armed forces, including the navy, during the union with Sweden. During most of the union the navy was subjected to low funding, even though there were ambitious plans to expand it. In the late 19th century, the fleet was increased to defend a possible independent Norway from her Swedish neighbours. In 1900, just five years prior to the separation from Sweden, the navy, which was maintained for coastal defense, consisted of: two British-built

coastal defence ship Coastal defence ships (sometimes called coastal battleships or coast defence ships) were warships built for the purpose of coastal defence, mostly during the period from 1860 to 1920. They were small, often cruiser-sized warships that sacrifi ...

s ( and – each armored and displacing about 3,500 tons), four ironclad

monitors Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West Vir ...

, three unarmored gun vessels, twelve gunboats, sixteen small (sixty ton) gunboats, and a flotilla of twenty-seven

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of se ...

s. These were operated by 116 active duty officers (with an additional sixty reserve) and 700 petty officers and seamen. HaarfagreOgTordenskjold

Norway was neutral during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, but the armed forces were mobilised to protect Norway's neutrality. The neutrality was sorely tested – the nation's merchant fleet suffered heavy casualties to

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...

s and

commerce raiders Commerce raiding (french: guerre de course, "war of the chase"; german: Handelskrieg, "trade war") is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than enga ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

began for the Royal Norwegian Navy on April 8, 1940, when the

''Albatross'' attacked the guard ship ''Pol III''. In the opening hours of the

Battle of Narvik The Battles of Narvik were fought from 9 April to 8 June 1940, as a naval battle in the Ofotfjord and as a land battle in the mountains surrounding the north Norwegian town of Narvik, as part of the Norwegian Campaign of the Second World War. ...

, the old coastal defence ships ("panserskip") and , both built before 1905 and hopelessly obsolete, attempted to put up a fight against the invading German warships; both were torpedoed and sunk. The German invasion fleet heading for

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

was significantly delayed when

Oscarsborg Fortress Oscarsborg Fortress ( no, Oscarsborg festning) is a coastal fortress in the Oslofjord, close to the small town of Drøbak in Viken county, Norway. The best known part is situated on two small islets. The main artillery batteries are on the island ...

opened fire with two of its three old 28 cm guns, followed by the 15 cm guns on Kopås on the eastern side of the

Drøbak Drøbak is a List of cities in Norway, town and the centre of the municipality of Frogn, in Viken county, Norway. The city is located along the Oslofjord, and has 13,409 inhabitants. History Drøbak and Frogn was established as a parish on its o ...

strait. The artillery pieces inflicted heavy damage on the German heavy cruiser ''Blücher'', which was subsequently sunk by torpedoes fired from Oscarsborg's land-based torpedo battery. ''Blücher'' sank with over 1,000 casualties among its crew and soldiers aboard. The German invasion fleet – believing ''Blücher'' had struck a mine – retreated south and called for air strikes on the fortress. This delay allowed

King Haakon VII Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick VI ...

of Norway and the Royal family, as well as the government, to escape capture. NorwegianNavyMemorial

On June 7, 1940, thirteen vessels, five aircraft and 500 men from the Royal Norwegian Navy followed the King to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and continued the fight from bases there until the war ended. The number of men was steadily increased as Norwegians living abroad, civilian sailors and men escaping from Norway joined the Royal Norwegian Navy. Funds from

Nortraship The Norwegian Shipping and Trade Mission (Nortraship) was established in London in April 1940 to administer the Norwegian merchant fleet outside German-controlled areas. Nortraship operated some 1,000 vessels and was the largest shipping company ...

were used to buy new ships, aircraft and equipment. Ten ships and 1,000 men from the Royal Norwegian Navy participated in the

Normandy Invasion Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...

in 1944. During the war the navy operated 118 ships, at the end of the war it had 58 ships and 7,500 men in service. They lost 27 ships, 18 fishing boats (of the ''

Shetland bus The Shetland Bus (Norwegian Bokmål: ''Shetlandsbussene'', def. pl.) was the nickname of a clandestine special operations group that made a permanent link between Mainland Shetland in Scotland and German-occupied Norway from 1941 until the sur ...

'') and 933 men in World War II. The navy had its own

air force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

from 1912 to 1944. The building of a new fleet in the 1960s was made possible with substantial economic support from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. During the

cold war The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, the navy was optimized for

sea denial Sea denial is a military term describing attempts to deny the enemy's ability to use the sea without necessarily attempting to control the sea for its own use. It is a parallel concept to sea control. The two concepts: sea control and sea denial ...

in coastal waters to make an invasion from the sea as difficult and costly as possible. With that mission in mind, the Royal Norwegian Navy consisted of a large number of small vessels and up to 15 small diesel-electric submarines. The navy is now replacing those vessels with a smaller number of larger and more capable vessels. The

Royal Norwegian Navy Museum The Royal Norwegian Navy Museum (Norwegian: ''Marinemuseet'') is a museum documenting the history of the Royal Norwegian Navy. It is located at the former main naval base of Karljohansvern in Horten. The museum was founded by C.F. Klinck on 24 Au ...

is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Norway's naval history.

Ensign and Jack

File:War ensign of Norway 1814.png, Naval Ensign 1814–1815 File:Swedish_and_Norwegian_naval_ensign_(1815–1844).svg, Naval Ensign 1815–1844
(during Union with Sweden, also used by the Swedish Navy) File:Naval Ensign of Norway (1844-1905).svg, Naval Ensign 1844–1905
(during Union with Sweden) File:Flag of Norway, state.svg, Naval Ensign since 1905 File:Union Jack of Sweden and Norway (1844-1905).svg, Naval Jack 1844–1905
(during Union with Sweden, also used by the Swedish Navy) File:Naval Jack of Norway.svg, Naval Jack since 1905

Bases

Some of The Royal Norwegian Navy's bases are: *

Haakonsvern Haakonsvern is the main base of the Royal Norwegian Navy and the largest naval base in the Nordic area. The base is located at Mathopen within Bergen municipality, about 15 km south-west of the city centre. Around 5,400 people work at the base ...

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

(main base for the navy). * Ramsund, in

Tjeldsund Tjeldsund ( sme, Dielddanuorri) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The southwestern part of the municipality is part of the traditional district of Ofoten and the rest of the municipality is part of Central Hålogaland. The a ...

, between the towns of

Harstad ( se, Hárstták) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the Harstad (town), town of Harstad, the most populous town in Centra ...

and

Narvik ( se, Áhkanjárga) is the third-largest municipality in Nordland county, Norway, by population. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Narvik. Some of the notable villages in the municipality include Ankenesstranda, Ball ...

(special operations/

Marinejegerkommandoen ''Marinejegerkommandoen'' (MJK) ( en, Naval Special Operations Command) is the maritime/naval special warfare unit of the Norwegian Armed Forces and was established in 1953. The MJK is under the command of the Norwegian Special Operations Com ...

) *

Trondenes Fort Trondenes Fort is a fort situated on the Trondenes peninsula in the municipality of Harstad in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located about north of the town of Harstad. The fort has been the main base for the Norwegian Coastal Ranger ...

(Coastal Ranger Command) *

Sortland or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include Bø, Holand, Holmstad, ...

(Coast Guard Squadron North) *

KNM Harald Haarfagre KNM may refer to: * Kongelig Norsk Marine, Royal Norwegian Navy ship prefix * Koninklijke Nederlandse Munt, Royal Dutch Mint, mint of the Netherlands * Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen, a Salafi movement in India * Kualanamu International Airport rail ...

Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...

(Recruitment base for navy and air force conscripts) *

Karljohansvern Karjohansvern (''Karljohansvern Orlogsstasjon, KJV'') at Horten was the main base for the Royal Norwegian Navy from 1850 to 1963. Background In 1818, it was decided to establish a naval base in Horten. It was first called ''Hortens verft'', an ...

Horten is a town and municipality in Vestfold in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the town of Åsgårdstrand an ...

(training facility)

Organization

The Navy is organized into the Fleet, the Coast Guard, and the main bases. The Fleet consists of: * Fleet Chief Staff, * 1st Frigate Squadron (''1. Fregattskvadron'') * Submarine Branch (''Ubåtvåpenet'') * 1st Corvette Squadron (''1. Korvettskvadron'') * 1st Minesweeper Squadron (''1. Minerydderskvadron'') * Fleet Logistics Commando (''Marinens Logistikkkommando'') * Coastal Ranger Commando (''

Kystjegerkommandoen ''Kystjegerkommandoen'' (KJK: in English "Coastal Ranger Commando") is a Norwegian amphibious unit trained to operate in littoral combat theatres, filling the role of a marine corps and coastal artillery. History The unit was created when it bec ...

'') * Naval EOD Command (''

Minedykkerkommandoen Minedykkerkommandoen (MDK) or ''Norwegian Naval EOD Command'' is a clearance diver group. MDK is subordinate to the Royal Norwegian Navy. MDK is located at Haakonsvern Naval Base in Bergen and Ramsund Naval Base, in vicinity of Harstad. The C ...

'') The Naval Schools are: * Royal Norwegian Naval Basic Training Establishment, KNM Harald Haarfagre,

* Royal Norwegian Navy Officer Candidate School,

and

* Royal Norwegian Naval Academy, Laksevåg, Bergen * Royal Norwegian Naval Training Establishment, KNM Tordenskjold,

, Bergen Two of the schools of the Navy retain

es, reminiscent of

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

practises. Museum:

Fleet units and vessels (present)

Submarine Branch

The submarine fleet consists of several submarines. "Ubåtvåpenet" maintain six ''Ula''-class submarines: :* ''Ula'' (S300) :* ''Utsira'' (S301) :* ''Utstein'' (S302) :* ''Utvær'' (S303) :* ''Uthaug'' (S304) :* ''Uredd'' (S305) KNM Fridtjof Nansen-2006-06-01-side

1st Frigate Squadron

Note: These ships are generally considered destroyers by their officers and other navies due to their size and role. ''

Helge Ingstad Helge Marcus Ingstad (30 December 1899 – 29 March 2001) was a Norwegian explorer. In 1960, after mapping some Norse settlements, Ingstad and his wife archaeologist Anne Stine Ingstad found remnants of a Viking settlement in L'Anse aux Meadows ...

'' (F313) was decommissioned and sold for scrap after a collision with an oil tanker in November 2018 severely damaged the ship. * . Five vessels commissioned. Since late 2018, four in service. ** (F310) Launched June 3, 2004. Commissioned April 5, 2006. ** (F311) Launched May 25, 2005. Commissioned May 21, 2007. ** (F312) Launched April 28, 2006. Commissioned April 30, 2008. ** (F314) Launched February 11, 2009. Commissioned January 18, 2011.

1st Corvette Squadron

The Coastal Warfare fleet consists of

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...

s. * Missile Patrol Boat (''Skjold'' class), all 6 commissioned: :* ''Skjold'' (P960) Launched September 22, 1998. Commissioned April 17, 1999 :* ''Storm'' (P961) Launched November 1, 2006. :* ''Skudd'' (P962) Launched April 30, 2007. :* ''Steil'' (P963) Launched January 15, 2008. :* ''Glimt'' (P964) :* ''Gnist'' (P965)

Mine Branch

*1st Mine Clearing Squadron ** Flagship *** ''Nordkapp'' A531 (1980) - former coast guard patrol vessel (W320) commissioned into navy service effective 1 November 2022. ** (1994) *** ''Oksøy'' M340 *** ''Karmøy'' M341 *** ''Måløy'' M342 *** ''Hinnøy'' M343 M352 River Clyde

:* (1996): :** ''Alta'' M350 :** ''Otra'' M351 :** ''Rauma'' M352 :** ''Orkla'' M353 (Ship sunk on 19 November 2002) :** ''Glomma'' M354 Stridsbåt90N

Coastal Ranger Command

* Tactical Boat Squadron **

Combat Boat 90 Stridsbåt 90 H(alv) (Strb 90 H; CB90) is a class of fast military assault craft used by several countries after being originally developed for the Swedish Navy by Dockstavarvet. Its name means Combat Boat 90 Half; the ''90'' refers to the year ...

N (1996) ***''Trondenes'' ***''Skrolsvik'' ***''Kråkenes'' ***''Stangnes'' ***''Kjøkøy'' ***''Mørvika'' ***''Kopås'' ***''Tangen'' ***''Oddane'' ***''Malmøya'' ***''Hysnes'' ***''Brettingen'' ***''Løkhaug'' ***''Søviknes'' ***''Hellen'' ***''Osternes'' ***''Fjell'' ***''Lerøy'' ***''Torås'' ***''Møvik''

Norwegian Naval EOD Commando

Fleet Logistics Command

* Supply/underway replenishment ship ''Maud'' (A530). Acquired in November 2018 and first "maiden deployment" initiated in September 2021. 9703916 KNM Maud 2018

* Royal yacht: ** ''Norge'' (A553) * ''Magnus Lagabøte'' (A537) * ''Olav Trygvasson'' (A536)

Coast Guard units and vessels

* ''Harstad'' * ''Svalbard'' * ''Andenes'' * ''Heimdal'' * ''Farm'' * '' Barentshav'' * ''Sortland'' * ''Bergen'' * ''Ålesund'' * ''Nornen'' * ''Njord'' * ''Tor''

Future vessels

Norway has prioritized replacing its current submarine fleet. In February 2017 the German manufacturer Thyssen Krupp was selected to deliver four new submarines, of the

Type 212CD submarine The Type 212CD class (for Common Design) is a submarine class developed by ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) for the Norwegian and German navies. The class is derived from the Type 212 submarine class, but will be significantly larger than the ...

-class design, starting in the latter 2020s to replace the Ula-class boats. A firm build contract with Thyssen Krupp was anticipated in the first half of 2020 as part of a joint program under which Norway will procure four submarines and Germany two. However, as of the end of 2020 a contract had not yet been signed. In March 2021 it was indicated that an agreement had been reached between Norway and Germany to initiate the acquisition program, pending approval by the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

. The contract was signed in July 2021 and construction of the first vessel is to begin in 2023. Delivery of the first boat to the Royal Norwegian Navy is anticipated in 2029. The Coast Guard is replacing its existing ''Nordkapp''-class vessels with significantly larger ice-capable ships, each displacing just under 10,000 tonnes. The three new ''Jan Mayen''-class ships will be armed with a 57mm main gun and be capable of operating up to two medium-sized helicopters. The ships have an overall length of 446 feet with a beam of 72 feet and a draft of 20 feet. The maximum speed will be 22 knots with more than 60 days endurance and the complement will be up to 100 people. The first ship, ''KV Jan Mayen'', was launched by the Vard Tulcea shipyard in Romania in 2021 and towed to the Vard Langsten shipyard in

Tomrefjord Tomra or Tomrefjord is a village located in Vestnes Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located just south of the village of Vik at the end of the Tomrefjorden. The village of Fiksdal lies to the northwest. The village ha ...

for completion. She was christened in November 2022, having started builder's sea trials in October. Delivery was anticipated in early 2023. The second ship of the class, KV ''Bjørnøya'', was transferred to Norway for her final fit out at the Vard Langsten yard in February/March 2022. The 2020 Norwegian defence plan envisages the replacement of the current major surface vessels "after 2030". Decisions concerning type and number of vessels are to be "made in the next planning period".

Insignia

;Commissioned officer ranks The rank insignia of

commissioned officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...

s. ;Other ranks The rank insignia of

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...