The Type 212A is a class of diesel-electric

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 Navy, Soviet and Russian Navy, Russian navies ...

developed by

Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (often abbreviated HDW) is a German shipbuilding company, headquartered in Kiel. It is part of the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) group, owned by ThyssenKrupp. The Howaldtswerke shipyard was founded in Kiel i ...

AG (HDW) for the

German Navy The German Navy (, ) is part of the unified (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Marine'' (German Navy) became the official ...

(), and the

Italian Navy The Italian Navy (; abbreviated as MM) is one of the four branches of Italian Armed Forces and was formed in 1946 from what remained of the ''Regia Marina'' (Royal Navy) after World War II. , the Italian Navy had a strength of 30,923 active per ...

where it is known as the ''Todaro'' class. It features diesel propulsion and an additional

air-independent propulsion Air-independent propulsion (AIP), or air-independent power, is any marine propulsion technology that allows a non-nuclear submarine to operate without access to atmospheric oxygen (by surfacing or using a snorkel). AIP can augment or replace th ...

(AIP) system using

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...

proton-exchange membrane A proton-exchange membrane, or polymer-electrolyte membrane (PEM), is a semipermeable membrane generally made from ionomers and designed to conduct protons while acting as an electronic insulator and reactant barrier, e.g. to oxygen and hydrogen ...

(PEM)

compressed hydrogen Compressed hydrogen (CH2, CGH2 or CGH2) is the gaseous state of the element hydrogen kept under pressure. Compressed hydrogen in hydrogen tanks at 350 bar (5,000 psi) and 700 bar (10,000 psi) is used for mobile hydrogen storage in hydrogen vehi ...

fuel cell A fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of a fuel (often hydrogen fuel, hydrogen) and an oxidizing agent (often oxygen) into electricity through a pair of redox reactions. Fuel cells are different from most bat ...

s. The submarines can operate at high speed on diesel power or switch to the AIP system for silent slow cruising, staying submerged for up to three weeks with little exhaust heat. The system is also said to be vibration-free and virtually undetectable. The Type 212 is the first fuel cell propulsion system equipped submarine series.

Development

At the beginning of the 1990s the

was seeking a replacement for the

Type 206 submarine The Type 206 is a class of diesel-electric submarines (U-boats) developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW). Its design is based on the preceding Type 205 submarine class. These small and agile submarines were built during the Cold War to o ...

s. Initial study started on a

Type 209 The Type 209 () is a range of diesel-electric attack submarines developed exclusively for export by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft of Germany. Five class variants (Types 209/1100, 209/1200, 209/1300, 209/1400 and 209/1500), including modification ...

improved design, with AIP capability, called Type 212. The final programme started in 1994 as the navies of Germany and Italy began working together to design a new conventional submarine, respectively to operate in the shallow and confined waters of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

and in the deeper waters of the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

. The two different requirements were mixed into a common one and, because of significant updates to the design, the designation has been changed to ''Type 212A'' since then. On 22 April 1996 a Memorandum of Understanding gave the start to the cooperation for building four vessels for the

and four vessels for the

. Its main aim was the construction of identical boats and the start of a collaboration in logistic and life-cycle support for the two navies. The German government placed an initial order of four ''Type 212A'' submarines in 1998. The German Submarine Consortium built them at the shipyards of HDW and Thyssen Nordseewerke

GmbH (; ) is a type of Juridical person, legal entity in German-speaking countries. It is equivalent to a (Sàrl) in the Romandy, French-speaking region of Switzerland and to a (Sagl) in the Ticino, Italian-speaking region of Switzerland. It is a ...

(TNSW) of

Emden Emden () is an Independent city (Germany), independent town and seaport in Lower Saxony in the north-west of Germany and lies on the River Ems (river), Ems, close to the Germany–Netherlands border, Netherlands border. It is the main town in t ...

. Different sections of the submarines were constructed at both sites at the same time and then half of them were shipped to the respective other yard so that both HDW and Thyssen Nordseewerke assembled two complete submarines each. In the same year the Italian government placed an order of two ''U212A'' submarines built by

Fincantieri Fincantieri S.p.A. () is an Italian shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. Already the largest shipbuilder in Europe, after the acquisition of Vard in 2013, Fincantieri group doubled in size to become the fourth largest in the world (2014 ...

for the

() at

Muggiano Lerici (, locally ) is a ''comune'' in the province of La Spezia, in the Italian region of Liguria, part of the Italian Riviera. It is situated on the coast of the Gulf of La Spezia, southeast of La Spezia. It is known as the place where the p ...

shipyard, designated as the Todaro class. The German Navy ordered two additional, improved submarines in 2006, to be delivered from 2012 on, longer to give additional space for a new reconnaissance mast. On 21 April 2008 the Italian Navy ordered the optional second batch of submarine, in the same configuration of the original ones. Some upgrading should involve materials and components of commercial derivation, as well as the software package of the CMS. The intention is to keep the same configuration of the first series and reduce maintenance costs. The export-oriented

Type 214 submarine The Type 214 is a class of diesel–electric powertrain, diesel–electric submarines developed exclusively for export by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft, Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (HDW). It features diesel propulsion with an air-independen ...

succeeds the

Type 209 submarine The Type 209 () is a range of diesel-electric attack submarines developed exclusively for export by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft of Germany. Five class variants (Types 209/1100, 209/1200, 209/1300, 209/1400 and 209/1500), including modificatio ...

and shares certain features with the Type 212A, such as the AIP fuel cell propulsion. Poland announced in December 2013 they would lease, rather than buy, two U212-A's, on account of not meeting "requirements of tactical and technical equipment developed by the military, including in particular the propulsion system, missile weapons and rescue system". On 22 December 2015 Admiral Giuseppe De Giorgi, Commander in Chief of the

, announced plans to build another two U212A submarines. In December 2022, an amended contract was signed for production of a third NFS Submarine based on the design of the previous two submarines. The third submarine (NFS 3) is planned to be delivered at the end of 2030, while a contract for the fourth boat was anticipated in 2023. In October 2016, during the celebration of the commissioning of ''U-36'', the German Navy announced the intent to procure another batch of two U212As within the next decade.

Type 212CD

In February 2017, it was announced that the

Royal Norwegian Navy The Royal Norwegian Navy () is the branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces responsible for navy, naval operations of Norway, including those of the Norwegian Coast Guard. , the Royal Norwegian Navy consists of approximately 3,700 personnel (9,450 i ...

would procure four submarines based on the Type 212. Initial plans envisaged service entry between 2025 and 2028, but the Norwegian 2020 Defence Plan later This "CD" (Common Design) variant of the Type 212 will consist of six submarines, with the German Navy ordering two new boats alongside the four Norwegian vessels. In March 2021 an agreement was reached between Norway and Germany to initiate the acquisition program, pending approval by the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet (assembly), Diet") is the lower house of the Germany, German Federalism in Germany, federal parliament. It is the only constitutional body of the federation directly elected by the German people. The Bundestag wa ...

. The contract for construction of the six boats was signed in July 2021 with delivery of the first boat to the Royal Norwegian Navy

Design

Partly owing to the "X" arrangement of the stern planes, the ''Type 212'' is capable of operating in as little as of water. This is a long-standing requirement for German submarine designs, enabling them to pass a strategic point in the Baltic Sea (the ) submerged. This allows it to come closer to shore than most contemporary submarines.

Commando A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...

s operating from the boat can surface The prismatic hull cross-section and smoothly faired transitions from the hull to the

sail A sail is a tensile structure, which is made from fabric or other membrane materials, that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail-powered land vehicles. Sails may b ...

improve the boat's

stealth Stealth may refer to: Military *Stealth technology, technology used to conceal ships, aircraft, and missiles **Stealth aircraft, aircraft which use stealth technology ** Stealth ground vehicle, ground vehicles which use stealth technology ** Ste ...

characteristics.

Air-independent propulsion

Although hydrogen-oxygen propulsion had been considered for submarines as early as World War I, In the ''Type 212'' this has been countered by storing the fuel and oxidizer in tanks outside the crew space, between the

pressure hull A submarine hull has two major components, the ''superstructure'' and the ''pressure hull''. The external portion of a submarine’s hull—that part that does not resist sea pressure and is free-flooding—is known as the “superstructure” i ...

and outer light hull. The gases are piped through the pressure hull to the

fuel cells A fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of a fuel (often hydrogen) and an oxidizing agent (often oxygen) into electricity through a pair of redox reactions. Fuel cells are different from most batteries in req ...

as needed to generate electricity, but at any given time there is only a very small amount of gas present in the crew space. In October 2024 it was reported that a new lithium-ion battery system was developed by Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, which will be installed and tested on a existing Type 212A submarine.

Weapons

The ''Type 212A'' is capable of launching the

fiber optic An optical fiber, or optical fibre, is a flexible glass or plastic fiber that can transmit light from one end to the other. Such fibers find wide usage in fiber-optic communications, where they permit transmission over longer distances and at ...

-guided

DM2A4 DM2A4 Seehecht (export designation "''SeaHake mod 4''" ) is the latest heavyweight torpedo developed by Atlas Elektronik for the German Navy, as a further update of DM2 (Deutsches Modell 2) torpedo which was released in 1976. Description Bei ...

() heavyweight torpedo, the WASS BlackShark torpedo and short-range missiles from its six torpedo tubes, which use a water ram expulsion system. Future capability may include tube-launched cruise missiles. The short-range

IDAS In Greek mythology, Idas (; ), was a Messenian prince. He was one of the Argonauts, a participant in the hunt for the Calydonian Boar and contender with the gods. Idas was described as keen and spirited.Hyginus, ''Fabulae'14/ref> Family Idas ...

missile (based on the

IRIS-T The IRIS-T (infrared imaging system tail/thrust vector-controlled) is a family of short range infrared homing air-to-air missile, air-to-air and short to medium range surface-to-air missile, surface-to-air missiles. It is also called AIM-2000. ...

missile), primarily intended for use against air threats as well as small and medium-sized sea and near-land targets, is currently being developed by Diehl BGT Defence to be fired from Type 212's torpedo tubes. IDAS is fiber-optic guided and has a range of approximately . Four missiles fit in one torpedo tube, stored in a magazine. First deliveries of IDAS for the

were scheduled from 2014 on. A 30mm auto-cannon called Muräne (

moray Moray ( ; or ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Its council is based in Elgin, the area' ...

) to support diver operations and to give warning shots is being considered as well. The cannon, probably a version of the Rheinmetall RMK30, will be stored in a retractable mast and can be fired without the boat surfacing. The mast will also be designed to contain three Aladin UAVs for reconnaissance missions. This mast is likely to be mounted on the second batch of Type 212 submarines for the German Navy.

Operations

In April 2006, the

's ''U-32'' sailed from the

Naval Station Rota Naval Station Rota, also known as NAVSTA Rota (), is a Spanish naval base, that is jointly used by the Spanish Navy and the United States Navy. Located in Rota in the Province of Cádiz, NAVSTA Rota is the largest American military community in ...

in Spain in two weeks, travelling without surfacing nor snorkelling. The

's S 526 ''Todaro'' was deployed, for over six months in 2008, to the United States for the CONUS 2008 exercise with the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. The Italian Navy's S 527 ''Scirè'' was deployed, for over five months in 2009, to the United States for the CONUS 2009 exercise with the US Navy. Between 1 September 2012 and 13 February 2013, the Italian Navy's S 526 ''Todaro'' was deployed to the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden (; ) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Channel, the Socotra Archipelago, Puntland in Somalia and Somaliland to the south. ...

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

Gulf of Oman The Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman ( ''khalīj ʿumān''; ''daryâ-ye omân''), also known as Gulf of Makran or Sea of Makran ( ''khalīj makrān''; ''daryâ-ye makrān''), is a gulf in the Indian Ocean that connects the Arabian Sea with th ...

and the Indian Ocean for the first time. In 2013, while on the way to participate in naval exercises in US waters, the

's ''U-32'' established a new record for non-nuclear submarines with 18 days in submerged transit without snorkelling. On 15 October 2017, the German Navy's ''U-35'' suffered damage to its rudder fins while conducting dives off the Norwegian coast.

List of boats

Potential operators

Colombia expressed its interest for the ship in 2024.

General characteristics

* Displacement: 1,450

tonne The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton in the United States to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the s ...

s surfaced, 1,830 tonnes submerged 2,500

s surfaced for 212CD * Length: 56 m (183.7 ft), 57.2 m (187.66 ft) (2nd batch) 73 m for 212CD * Beam: 7 m (22.96 ft) 10 m for 212CD * Draft: 6 m (19.68 ft) 7 m for 212CD * Propulsion: ** 1 MTU 16V 396 diesel-engine ** 9 HDW/

PEM fuel cells, 30–40 kW each (U-31) ** 2 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells 120 kW (U-32, U-33, U-34) ** 1 Siemens ''Permasyn''

electric motor An electric motor is a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a electromagnetic coil, wire winding to gene ...

1700 kW, driving a single seven-bladed skewback propeller * Speed: 20

knots A knot is a fastening in rope or interwoven lines. Knot or knots may also refer to: Other common meanings * Knot (unit), of speed * Knot (wood), a timber imperfection Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Knots'' (film), a 2004 film * ''Kn ...

(37 km/h) submerged, 12 knots surfaced * Depth: over * Range: ** 8,000 nautical miles (14,800 km, or 9,196 miles) at 8 knots (15 km/h) * Endurance: 3 weeks without

snorkeling Snorkeling (American and British English spelling differences#Doubled in British English, British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of human swimming, swimming face down on or through a body of water while breathing ...

, 12 weeks overall * Armament: ** 6 x 533 mm

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 (in 2 forward-pointing asymmetric groups of left 4 + right 2 ) with 13

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...

es or 24 tube mines ** IDAS missiles ** 24 external

naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...

s (optional) *

Countermeasure A countermeasure is a measure or action taken to counter or offset another one. As a general concept, it implies precision and is any technological or tactical solution or system designed to prevent an undesirable outcome in the process. The fi ...

s: ** Torpedo defence system ''Tau'', 4 launchers, 40 jammers/

decoy A decoy (derived from the Dutch ''de'' ''kooi'', literally "the cage" or possibly ''eenden kooi'', " duck cage") is usually a person, device, or event which resembles what an individual or a group might be looking for, but it is only meant to ...

s * Sensors: ** STN Atlas ''DBQS40''

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects o ...

suite: *** ''TAS-3'' passive low-frequency

towed array sonar A towed array sonar is a system of hydrophones towed behind a submarine or a surface ship on a cable. Trailing the hydrophones behind the vessel, on a cable that can be kilometers long, keeps the array's sensors away from the ship's own noise sou ...

(deployed from sail) *** ''FAS-3'' passive low-, and medium-frequency hull-mounted flank array sonar *** ''MOA 3070'' mine detection sonar **

Periscope A periscope is an instrument for observation over, around or through an object, obstacle or condition that prevents direct line-of-sight observation from an observer's current position. In its simplest form, it consists of an outer case with ...

s: ***

Carl Zeiss Carl Zeiss (; 11 September 1816 – 3 December 1888) was a German scientific instrument maker, optician and businessman. In 1846 he founded his workshop, which is still in business as Zeiss (company), Zeiss. Zeiss gathered a group of gifted p ...

''SERO 14'', with

FLIR Forward-looking infrared (FLIR) cameras, typically used on military and civilian aircraft, use a thermographic camera that senses infrared radiation. The sensors installed in forward-looking infrared cameras, as well as those of other thermal ...

and optical

rangefinder A rangefinder (also rangefinding telemeter, depending on the context) is a device used to Length measurement, measure distances to remote objects. Originally optical devices used in surveying, they soon found applications in other fields, suc ...

*** Carl Zeiss ''SERO 15'', with

laser rangefinder A laser rangefinder, also known as a laser telemeter or laser distance meter, is a rangefinder that uses a laser beam to determine the distance to an object. The most common form of laser rangefinder operates on the time of flight principle by ...

Riva Calzoni Riva may refer to: People * Riva (surname) * Riva Castleman (1930–2014), American art historian, art curator and author * Riva Ganguly Das (born 1961), Indian diplomat * Riva (footballer), Brazilian former footballer Rivadávio Alves Pereira ...

periscope masts and snorkeling systems **

Kelvin Hughes Hensoldt UK, formerly Kelvin Hughes, is a British company specialising in the design and manufacture of navigation and surveillance systems and a supplier of navigational data to both the commercial marine and government marketplace. The company ...

''Type 1007'' I band navigation

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

EADS Airbus SE ( ; ; ; ) is a Pan-European aerospace corporation. The company's primary business is the design and manufacturing of commercial aircraft but it also has separate defence and space and helicopter divisions. Airbus has long been th ...

''FL 1800U'' ESM suite ** WASS

hydrophone A hydrophone () is a microphone designed for underwater use, for recording or listening to underwater sound. Most hydrophones contains a piezoelectric transducer that generates an electric potential when subjected to a pressure change, such as a ...

s **

Avio Avio S.p.A. is an Italian company operating in the aerospace sector with its head office in Colleferro near Rome, Italy. Founded in 1908, it is present in Italy and abroad with different commercial offices and 10 production sites. Avio operate ...

''GAUDI''

autopilot An autopilot is a system used to control the path of a vehicle without requiring constant manual control by a human operator. Autopilots do not replace human operators. Instead, the autopilot assists the operator's control of the vehicle, allow ...

and hydraulic systems **

Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production and fo ...

''MSI-91'' combat system * Crew complement: 23–27 (incl. 5 officers)

References

General references

External links

German Bundeswehr official Type 212A web pagenaval-technology.com — U212/U214 Attack Submarines, GermanyGerman Type 212A deal bolsters submarine force
Jane's Navy International, 28 September 2006
Todaro (S 526)
Marina Militare website {{DEFAULTSORT:Type 212 Submarine * Attack submarines