The S-81 ‘Isaac Peral’ submarine carried out its first static immersion this Thursday within the test schedule agreed between Navantia, the Navy and the Ministry of Defence.
The dive was carried out in the waters of the La Algameca naval station, in front of the Navy Diving Center. It is part of the safety milestones for the construction and testing of the S-80 submarine program and is carried out after surface navigation and prior to immersion navigations.
The immersion has been carried out in different phases, in order to measure the drafts in the Navantia weapons dock before going out into the open sea. The submarine has carried out its immersion in a location close to the 50-meter buoy that is located in front of the Navy Diving Center in La Algameca. The tests on the S-81 submarine will continue until it is delivered to the Navy.
“With its first static dive, the S81 has passed a milestone on the road to full operability. The close collaboration between Navantia, the Navy and the Ministry of Defense is making it possible to advance firmly in the greatest challenge that the Spanish industry has ever faced. The first dive that we have witnessed today is the result of the efforts of many professionals and a high level of demand and excellence, for this reason I want to thank all the people involved in the program for their dedication and commitment to guarantee its success and congratulate them for this important step”, declared the president of Navantia, Ricardo Domínguez.
Navantia launched the S-81 Isaac Peral last December, after almost five months of work in the dry dock of the Cartagena shipyard. After the maneuver, the ship was moored at the dock, from where the current port and sea trials are being carried out.
The S-81 is in the final phase of its testing period, a regulated and very demanding procedure, aimed at checking and, if necessary, correcting and optimizing the operation of all the submarine’s systems and its components. After the work in the dry dock, it is planned to carry out these new tests, including surface navigation, immersion, immersion navigation and immersion at maximum altitude.
The company emphasizes that “the entire testing period is carried out with the utmost rigor, with the participation of personnel from Navantia, the Navy and the Ministry of Defense, in order to certify the excellence in quality and operability of the ship”.
The testing period is in itself a challenge and a painstaking process in which all systems and subsystems have to be stressed, a very exhaustive job.
The S-80 program is the biggest technological challenge faced by the Spanish industry. With it, Spain reinforces its strategic autonomy by becoming one of the few countries that design and build its own submarines. Navantia becomes a Design Technical Authority. The S-80 represents a technological leap for the Spanish submarine weapon, with an integrated platform control system, a combat system and a weapons system capable of launching tactical missiles, a unique capability among NATO’s non-nuclear submarines. .
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