The ''Trafalgar'' class is a class of
nuclear-powered
Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
fleet submarine
A fleet submarine is a submarine with the speed, range, and endurance to operate as part of a navy's battle fleet. Examples of fleet submarines are the British First World War era K class and the American World War II era ''Gato'' class.
The t ...
s (SSNs) in service with the
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 ...
, and the successor to the . Like the majority of Royal Navy nuclear submarines, all seven boats were constructed at
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of B ...
shipyard,
Cumbria
Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. C ...
. With only one boat remaining active and in commission (as of 2022) and six retired from the seven originally in service, the class makes up part of the Royal Navy's nuclear-powered ‘hunter-killer’ submarine force. The ''Trafalgar'' class is being gradually replaced by the larger and more capable , of which five are currently commissioned.
The name ''Trafalgar'' refers to the
Battle of Trafalgar
The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...
fought between the Royal Navy and the combined fleets of France and Spain in 1805.
Development
The ''Trafalgar'' class were designed in the early 1970s during the
Cold War as a refinement of the preceding ''Swiftsure'' class. Including , the ''Trafalgar'' class are the fifth class of nuclear-powered fleet submarines to enter service with the Royal Navy. The first of the class, HMS ''Trafalgar'', was ordered on 7 April 1977 and completed in 1983. The last, HMS ''Triumph'', was ordered on 3 January 1986 and completed in 1991. All seven boats of the class were built and completed by
Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering
Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering, Ltd (VSEL) was a shipbuilding company based at Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria in northwest England that built warships, civilian ships, submarines and armaments. The company was historically the Naval Construct ...
at the
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is a port town in Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1867 and merged with Dalton-in-Furness Urban District in 1974 to form the Borough of B ...
shipyard.
In 1982, ''Jane's Fighting Ships'' recorded: "Estimated cost of fourth submarine £175 million including equipment and weapon system when fitted." In 1986, ''Jane's Fighting Ships'' recorded that the average cost for this class was £200 million at 1984–85 prices.
[''Jane's Fighting Ships, 1986–87''.]
Potential export
In 1987, the Canadian White Paper on Defence recommended the purchase of 10 to 12 - or ''Trafalgar''-class submarines under technology transfer, with the choice of the type of submarine due to be confirmed before summer 1988. The goal was to build up a three-ocean navy and to assert Canadian sovereignty over Arctic waters. The purchase was finally abandoned in April 1989 due to the financial economy. In 1998 the Canadian government signed an agreement to acquire four of the Royal Navy's diesel-electric
''Upholder''-class submarines.
Operational service
The submarines of the class have seen service in a wide range of locations, most notably firing
Tomahawk
A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America. It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone, bone, or antler, and Eur ...
land-attack cruise missiles in anger at targets during conflicts in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
,
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
and
Libya
Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...
. Three of the ''Trafalgar''-class boats have been involved in such operations. In 2001 ''Trafalgar'' took part in
Operation Veritas
Operation Veritas was the codename used for British military operations against the Taliban government of Afghanistan in 2001. British forces played a supporting role to the American Operation Enduring Freedom. In addition, the British contribut ...
, the attack on Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces following the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...
in the United States, becoming the first Royal Navy submarine to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles against
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. During April 2003, HMS ''Turbulent'' returned home flying the
Jolly Roger
Jolly Roger is the traditional English name for the flags flown to identify a pirate ship preceding or during an attack, during the early 18th century (the later part of the Golden Age of Piracy).
The flag most commonly identified as the Jolly ...
after having launched thirty Tomahawk cruise missiles during the invasion of Iraq. As part of the
2011 military intervention in Libya
On 19 March 2011, a multi-state NATO-led coalition began a military intervention in Libya, to implement United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, in response to events during the First Libyan Civil War. With ten votes in favour and fiv ...
, HMS ''Triumph'' fired her Tomahawk cruise missiles on three occasions; first on 19 March, then again on 20 March, and finally on 24 March. Her primary targets were Libyan air-defence installations around the city of
Sabha. ''Triumph'' returned to Devonport on 3 April 2011 flying a Jolly Roger adorned with six small Tomahawk axes to indicate the missiles fired by the submarine in the operation.
In 1993 ''Triumph'' sailed to Australia, covering a distance of whilst submerged and without any forward support. As of 2011, this still remained the longest solo deployment by any British nuclear submarine.
Service problems
In 1998, ''Trenchant'' experienced a steam leak, forcing the crew to shut down the nuclear reactor. In 2000 a leak in the
PWR1 reactor primary cooling circuit was discovered on ''Tireless'', forcing her to proceed to
Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
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on diesel power.
The fault was found to be due to thermal fatigue cracks, requiring the other ''Trafalgar''-class boats, and some of the remaining ''Swiftsure''-class boats, to be urgently inspected and if necessary modified.
In 2013 the Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator reported that the reactor systems were suffering increasing technical problems due to ageing, requiring effective management. An example was that ''Tireless'' had had a small radioactive coolant leak for eight days in February 2013.
Characteristics
![Royal Navy Submarine HMS Turbulent with a Merlin Helicopter from HMS St Albans MOD 45153520](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Royal_Navy_Submarine_HMS_Turbulent_with_a_Merlin_Helicopter_from_HMS_St_Albans_MOD_45153520.jpg)
As a refinement of the preceding ''Swiftsure'' class, the design of the ''Trafalgar'' class bears some similarity, including its internal layout and the
Rolls-Royce PWR
The Rolls-Royce pressurised water reactor (PWR) series has powered the UK's Royal Navy nuclear submarines since the , commissioned in 1966. The first British nuclear submarine, , was powered by a Westinghouse S5W reactor.
Nuclear reactor desi ...
1 Core 3. However some improvements over the ''Swiftsure'' class include its reduced acoustic signature, which is due to the hull being covered in
anechoic tiles
__NOTOC__
Anechoic tiles are rubber or synthetic polymer tiles containing thousands of tiny voids, applied to the outer hulls of military ships and submarines, as well as anechoic chambers. Their function is twofold:
*To absorb the sound waves ...
which are designed to absorb sound rather than reflect it, making the boats quieter and more difficult to detect with active sonar. A pumpjet propulsion system is also used from boat 2 onward, rather than a conventional propeller. The ''Trafalgar'' class are long,
have a
beam of ,
a
draught of
and a dived displacement of .
Each boat has a complement of 130.
Like all Royal Navy submarines, the ''Trafalgar'' class have strengthened
fins
A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...
and retractable
hydroplanes
Hydroplaning and hydroplane may refer to:
* Aquaplaning or hydroplaning, a loss of steering or braking due to water on the road
* Hydroplane (boat), a fast motor boat used in racing
** Hydroplane racing, a sport involving racing hydroplanes on lak ...
, allowing them to surface through thick ice.
Four boats of the class — ''Torbay'', ''Trenchant'', ''Talent'' and ''Triumph'' — have been fitted with the
Sonar 2076 Sonar 2076 is a submarine sonar detection system designed by Thales
Thales of Miletus ( ; grc-gre, Θαλῆς; ) was a Greek mathematician, astronomer, statesman, and pre-Socratic philosopher from Miletus in Ionia, Asia Minor. He was one ...
system. Beginning in 2014, the last four boats of the class underwent a communications package upgrade.
The ''Trafalgar'' class is equipped with five
torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes.
There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...
s with accommodation for a mixture of up to 30 weapons:
*
Tomahawk
A tomahawk is a type of single-handed axe used by the many Indigenous peoples and nations of North America. It traditionally resembles a hatchet with a straight shaft. In pre-colonial times the head was made of stone, bone, or antler, and Eur ...
Block IV cruise missiles
*
Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes
The Tomahawk missiles are capable of hitting a target to within a few metres, to a range of .
Ostensibly, the submarines use the same
steering column
The automotive steering column is a device intended primarily for connecting the steering wheel to the steering mechanism.
Secondary functions
A steering column may also perform the following secondary functions:
*energy dissipation management ...
as was used in the
Wellington bombers of the
Second World War
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 opposi ...
.
Boats of the class
Initially, the last five boats of the ''Trafalgar'' class were to be replaced by the 'Future Fleet Submarine' programme, however this was effectively cancelled in 2001. The are currently in the process of replacing the ''Trafalgar'' class.
''Triumph'' is the only remaining submarine based at
HMNB Devonport. ''Talent'' and ''Trenchant'' were decommissioned in a joint ceremony at HMNB Devonport on 20 May 2022.
[Farewell to fleet members '']Ships Monthly
Kelsey Media is a magazine publisher and trade fair company based in Yalding, England. Founded in 1989, it has bought and sold many publications over the years, including former Bauer Media Group magazines ''Sea Angler'', ''Car Mechanics'' and ' ...
'' July 2022 page 15
In fiction
In June 2019,
ITV commissioned a six-part thriller based on board a fictional ''Trafalgar''-class submarine, HMS ''Tenacity''.
See also
*
List of submarines of the Royal Navy
*
List of submarine classes of the Royal Navy
*
List of submarine classes in service
The list of submarine classes in service includes all submarine classes currently in service with navies or other armed forces worldwide. For surface combatants, see the list of naval ship classes in service.
Ballistic missile submarines
C ...
*
Royal Navy Submarine Service
The Royal Navy Submarine Service is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. It is sometimes known as the Silent Service, as submarines are generally required to operate undetected.
The service operates six fleet submarines ( SSNs) ...
*
Future of the Royal Navy
*
Cruise missile submarine
A cruise missile submarine is a submarine that carries and launches cruise missiles ( SLCMs and anti-ship missiles) as its primary armament. Missiles greatly enhance a vessel's ability to attack surface combatants and strike land targets, and al ...
*
Attack submarine
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 ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
MaritimeQuest ''Trafalgar''-class overview
External links
* https://www.facebook.com/HMSTrafalgar/
Royal Navy Trafalgar Class Submarine(royalnavy.mod.uk)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trafalgar Class Submarine
Submarine classes
Nuclear-powered submarines