Blekinge-class submarine
The Blekinge-class submarine is the next generation of submarines developed by Kockums for the Swedish Navy, also known as the A26 type.
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Blekinge class |
| Builders | Saab Kockums |
| Operators | Swedish Navy |
| Preceded by | Gotland class |
| Cost | |
| In service | Under construction |
| Planned | 2 |
| Building | 2 |
| Completed | 0 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Submarine |
| Displacement | 1,925 long tons (1,956 t) surfaced |
| Length | 66.1 m (216 ft 10 in) |
| Beam | 6.75 m (22 ft 2 in) |
| Draught | 6 m (19 ft 8 in) |
| Propulsion | Diesel-electric and Stirling AIP |
| Endurance | 45 days (18 days underwater with AIP) |
| Test depth | 200 m (656 ft 2 in) |
| Complement | 17–26 |
| Armament |
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First planned at the beginning of the 1990s, the project was called "U-båt 2000" and was intended to be ready by the late 1990s or early 2000. With the end of the Cold War the naval threat from the Soviet Union disappeared and the new submarine class was deemed unnecessary. The project lay dormant for years until the mid-2000s when the need for a replacement for the Södermanland class became apparent. Originally the Scandinavian countries had intended to collaborate on the Viking class, but Denmark's withdrawal from submarine operations meant that Kockums proceeded on their own.
In February 2014 the project was cancelled because of disagreements between Kockums's new German owners, ThyssenKrupp, and the Swedish government. ThyssenKrupp refused to send a complete offer to any potential buyer, and demanded that each one buyer pay for the entire development rather than sharing the cost. The cancellation resulted in the Kockums equipment repossession incident on 8 April 2014. As per protocol, the Swedish government repossessed all equipment belonging to Defence Materiel Administration (Sweden), as well as all secret blueprints and images, using an armed escort. By orders from a manager, Kockums staff tried to sabotage the repossession by locking the gates with the repossession crew and escort still inside.
Maritime Today on 18 March 2015 reported that the project was restarted after the Swedish government placed a formal order for two A26 submarines for a maximum total cost of SEK 8.2 bn (approximately US$945 million as of 18 March 2015). According to the article, a Letter of Intent (LOI) had earlier been signed by Saab and FMV (The Swedish Defence Material Administration) in June 2014 regarding the Swedish Armed Forces’ underwater capability for the period 2015–2024. Saab has since acquired Kockums. The order in question for the two A26 submarines has been placed with what is now "Saab Kockums." These were to be delivered no later than 2022, a date subsequently pushed back, initially to 2024–25 and subsequently even further to 2027–28.