Given the breath of optimism caused by the acquisition of the F-16 Fighting Falcon fighters for the Argentine Air Force, The Armed Forces converge with this new management at a stage where the incorporation and recovery of capabilities continues to be an imperative need that they face every day. In the case of the Argentine Navy, the decades of disinvestment pose a scenario of lack of capabilities and obsolescence of various weapons systems in each of the operational Commands that the force has. In particular, the loss of the submarine ARA San Juan in November 2017 cut short the history of the Submarine Force.begun in 1933 with the incorporation of three Cavallini class units -known as Tarantinos- of Italian origin.
Since 1971, with the incorporation of the submarines ARA Santa Fe (S-21) and ARA Santiago del Estero (S-22) -former USS Catfish SS-339 and USS Chivo SS-341-, the Argentine Navy stopped acquiring second-hand submarines, the first new units being the class 209 submarines ARA “Salta” (S-31) and ARA “San Luis” (S-32). Later, in the mid-1970s, the Argentine Navy began one of the most ambitious programs in its history, which included the incorporation of two units built in Germany, and four built locally at the Minister Domecq García Shipyard, located on the waterfront. south of the City of Buenos Aires.
The TR-1700 submarines, as they were known, sought to consolidate the submarine capacity of the Argentine Navy, and for the first time it was planned to have at least six units. (throughout the history of weapons in our country there have never been more than 4 operational units)with the innovation that would have units built in our country, an unprecedented fact for the region in the 1970s/1980s, considering the experience of the assembly of the Salta class submarines in Tandanor.
The current situation of the Submarine Force Command is stagnant and far from its reason for being. Thanks to the invaluable efforts of our seafarers, submariners train aboard the ARA “Salta” -which has not been operational or carried out navigation for approximately 7 years- and training with friendly navy units, such as the Peruvian Navy.
If we take Chile and Brazil as an example, both countries, after years of operating the well-known Class 209, opted for the French option by acquiring Scorpene Class submarines. In the case of the Chilean Navy, the project began in 1998, culminating with the delivery of the first unit, the General O-Higgins Submarine, in 2005, followed by the General Carrera, the following year.
For its part, Brazil opted for a more ambitious program, which consisted of the construction of four Riachuelo-class diesel electric submarines (based on the Scorpene) at the Itaguaí facilities, an ad-hoc industrial complex built in Rio de Janeiro, with the additional of a nuclear-powered submarine, which represents a true milestone at the regional level. 15 years after its beginning, the Brazilian Navy Submarine Development Program (known as PROSUB) The first unit, the submarine “Riachuelo” (S40), is already in service, while acceptance tests at sea have already begun for the second submarine of the class, the “Humaitá” (S41), and the construction of the submarines continues. Tonelero (S42), Angostura (S43) and the nuclear submarine Alvaro Alberto.
Recovering submarine capacity: a priority for the Argentine Navy
As stated, the development of a submarine construction program is a medium-long term state policy that requires the corresponding economic support, and the political will necessary for the recovery of submarine capacity to be consolidated. Faced with an unprecedented situation throughout almost 100 years of existence of the Submarine Force, the possibility of incorporating a second-hand unit in order to “sail again” has been considered by the Ministry of Defense for some years.
Although during the last years of the previous administration there was an interest in incorporating at least one Tupí class submarine from the Brazilian Navy, units that are being decommissioned (to date the Tamoio (S-31), Timbira (S-32) and Tapajó (S-33) have already been deprogrammed), while the submarines Tupi (S-30) and Tikuna (S-34) are still in service. Another option that is currently being analyzed falls on the ULA class submarines of Norwegian origin.
This option, which began to be analyzed at least 5 years ago, contemplates at least one ULA submarine. These are units built in Germany in the late 1980s and early 1990s (1987-1992). These are six units developed for the Royal Norwegian Navy, specially designed for coastal operations. With a small size (59 meters in length, 1040 tons of displacement, and 1150 tons of displacement in immersion) they would be units with less projection to the latest generations of Argentine submarines (U-209 and TR-1700), the latter being Specially designed in search of considerable autonomy (70 days) and diving speed (25 knots on the surface).
About ULA class submarines
- Displacement: 435 tons
- Submerged displacement: 485 tons
- Length: 59.0 m
- Beam: 5.4m
- Prop: 4.6m
- Sensors: Surface radar: Kelvin Hughes 1007
- Main sonar: Atlas Elektronik CSU83
- Flank sonar: Thomson Sintra
- Armament: 8 tubes for 14 torpedoes of the Atlas Elektronik DM2A3 model and caliber 533 mm, or 16 anti-submarine mines.
- Propulsion: 2 diesel engines, plus an electric engine
- Power: 2 × 695 HP (2 × 1300 kW)
- Immersion power: 1 x 6000 HP (1 × 4474.2 kW).
- Speed: 20 kilometers (11 nmi)
- Diving speed: 43 kilometers (23 nmi)
- Depth: 250 m.
- Range: 9,260 kilometers (5,000 nmi) at 8 knots (14.82 km/h).
- Crew: 21 people
Briefly leaving aside the submarine weapon, it is worth highlighting the recent acquisition of four P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft from the Kingdom of Norway for the Naval Aviation Command, a branch of the Argentine Navy that is also suffering the consequences of decades of disinvestment.
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