Saab-Damen Unveiled their Walrus-class Submarine Replacement Design.

In an exclusive interview with the Dutch newspaper ‘Telegraaf’ on June 1st, the foremen of Saab and Damen showed an initial sketch of the new submarine, which they intend to offer to the Netherlands Defence organisation.

The submarine is a variant of Kockums' A26 (the future submarine of the Swedish Navy). Saab image.

The consortium, together with a large number of Dutch companies and institutions, is one of the contenders for the replacement of the Walrus class submarine. In the article, the foreman of the Dutch employers organisation Hans de Boer pleads for the purchase of Dutch goods: “This way our naval people get the best of the best”.

In the article in de ‘Telegraaf’ Hein van Ameijden (Damen) and Gunnar Wieslander (Saab Kockums) give a brief insight into the possibilities offered by the new submarine. “Due to the modular design of the boat, it is possible for many Dutch companies to implement their products in the submarine and to renew them easily during the life cycle. They also place the emphasis on the launcher for special forces, right next to the torpedo tubes in the nose of the boat. In the ‘Telegraaf’ we read: “Until now, sea soldiers were only able to leave the boat vertically one by one. The system on board the Dutch-Swedish boat makes it possible to swim out horizontally with eight people at the same time. Thanks to a diameter of one and a half meters, the pipe will be wide enough to launch miniature sea-going vessels, both manned and unmanned.