Type 212 Submarine

The Type 212 (also known as the Todaro-class) is a highly advanced diesel-electric submarine class developed in Germany by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft AG (HDW) and currently in service with the German and Italian navies. It features diesel propulsion and an additional air-independent propulsion (AIP) system using Siemens proton exchange membrane (PEM) hydrogen fuel cells. The submarine 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 without surfacing and with no exhaust heat. The system is also said to be vibration-free, extremely quiet and virtually undetectable.

The Type 212-class is one of only three fuel cell propulsion system equipped submarines ready for series production by 2007, the other being the Project 677 Lada-class submarine designed by Russian Rubin Design Bureau and the Victoria-class designed by Canadian Canada Submarine Consortium.

Specifications

 * Type: AIP equipped Diesel-Electric Hunter Killer Submarine
 * Service Period: 2005-Present
 * Characteristics
 * Length: Type 212A: 183.7 feet (56 meters); Type 212B: 187.66 feet (57.2 meters)
 * Beam: 22.96 feet (7 meters)
 * Draught: 19.68 feet (6 meters)
 * Displacement: 1,450 tonnes surfaced, 1,830 tonnes submerged
 * Crew: 28-32
 * Depth: over 700 meters
 * Endurance: 3 weeks (w/o snorkeling); 12 weeks (overall)
 * Range: 8,000 nautical miles (14,816 kilometers) at 8 knots (14.82 km/hr)
 * Speed: Surfaced: 12 knots (22.23 km/hr); Submerged: 20 knots (37.04 km/hr)
 * Propulsion:
 * 1 MTU 16V 396 diesel-engine
 * 9 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells, 30–40 kW each (212A)
 * 2 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells, 120 kW each (212B)
 * 1 Siemens Permasyn electric motor, 1700 kW, driving a single seven-bladed skewback propeller
 * Sensor Suite:
 * STN Atlas DBQS40 sonar suite
 * TAS-3 passive low-frequency towed array sonar (deployed from sail)
 * FAS-3 passive low-, and medium-frequency hull-mounted flank array sonar
 * MOA 3070 mine detection sonar
 * Carl Zeiss SERO 14, with FLIR and optical rangefinder
 * Carl Zeiss SERO 15, with laser rangefinder
 * Riva Calzoni periscope masts and snorkeling systems
 * Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 I-Band navigation radar
 * EADS FL 1800U ESM suite
 * WASS hydrophones
 * Avio GAUDI autopilot and hydraulic systems
 * Kongsberg MSI-91 combat system
 * Countermeasures
 * Torpedo defence system Tau, 4 launchers, 40 jammers/decoys
 * Armament:
 * 6 x 533 mm torpedo tubes (in 2 forward-pointing asymmetric groups of left 4 + right 2 ) with 13 torpedoes or 24 tube mines
 * IDAS missiles
 * 24 external naval mines (optional)

Bundesmarine

 * BMS U-31 (S181)
 * BMS U-32 (S182)
 * BMS U-33 (S183)
 * BMS U-34 (S184)
 * BMS U-35 (S185)
 * BMS U-36 (S186)
 * BMS U-37 (S187)
 * BMS U-38 (S188)
 * BMS U-39 (S189)
 * BMS U-40 (S190)
 * BMS U-41 (S191)
 * BMS U-42 (S192)

Marina Militare

 * ITS Salvatore Todaro (S526)
 * ITS Scire (S527)
 * ITS Pietro Venuti (S528)
 * ITS Romeo Romei (S529)
 * ITS Marcantonio Colonna (S530)
 * ITS Dante Alighieri (S531)