HSwMS Gotland (1995)
 HMS Gotland |
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| Career (Sweden) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | HMS Gotland |
| Namesake: | Swedish island Gotland |
| Builder: | Kockums |
| Laid down: | 10 October 1992 |
| Launched: | 2 February 1995 |
| Commissioned: | April 1996 |
| Homeport: | Karlskrona, Sweden |
| Motto: |
Gothus sum, cave cornua |
| Status: | Active in service |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1526 tons standard, 1647 tons submerged |
| Length: | 60.4 meters (198 feet 2 inches) |
| Beam: | 6.2 meters (20 feet 3 inches) |
| Draught: | 5.6 meters (18 feet 4 inches) |
| Propulsion: | two diesel engines (1,300 brake horsepower each), two Stirling engines (75 kilowatts each), one electric motor (1,800 shaft horsepower), one shaft |
| Speed: | 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced, 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) submerged |
| Endurance: | over 14 days submerged without snorkeling |
| Test depth: | 500 ft (150 m) |
| Complement: | 20 officers, 15 enlisted |
| Armament: | four 533-mm (21-inch) torpedo tubes with 12 torpedoes, two 400-mm (15.75-inch) torpedo tubes with 6 torpedoes, 48 external mines |
HMS Gotland (Gtd) is an attack submarine of the Swedish Navy. It is the first ship and name-giver of the Gotland class, which is the first operational submarine class in the world to use air-independent propulsion in form of Stirling engines which uses liquid oxygen and diesel as the propellant.
It was built by Kockums, launched in 1995 and subsequently commissioned in 1996.
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In 2004, the Swedish government received a request from the United States of America to lease Gotland – Swedish-flagged, commanded and manned, for a duration one year for use in anti-submarine warfare exercises. The Swedish government granted this request in October 2004, with both navies signing a memorandum of understanding on 21 March 2005.[1][2]
Gotland was loaded on board the Norwegian semi-submersible heavy-lift ship, MV Eide Transporter, on 10 May 2005, for a month-long voyage over the Atlantic Ocean and through the Panama Canal to Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego, California, where it arrived on 27 June 2005.[3][4][5] After a couple weeks of getting accustomed to the new environment, the exercises with United States 3rd Fleet began on 18 July 2005.[6] The lease was extended for another 12 months in 2006.[7][8][9]
Gotland managed to penetrate the defensive measures of Carrier Strike Group Seven undetected and snap several pictures of the USS Ronald Reagan during the December pre-deployment Joint Task Force Exercise 06-2 (JTFEX 06-2) in the Pacific Ocean (probably in the California Operating Areas), effectively "sinking" the aircraft carrier.[10] The exercise was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the US Fleet against modern diesel-electric submarines, which some have noted as severely lacking.[11][12]
In July 2007, Gotland departed San Diego for Sweden.[13]
Gallery[edit]
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HMS Gotland onboard M/V Eide Transporter in San Diego.
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HMS Gotland transits through San Diego Harbor with the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan following close behind during the “Sea and Air Parade” held as part of Fleet Week San Diego 2005.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "US Navy Leasing Swedish Gotland-Class Submarine". Deagel. Retrieved 2004-11-05.
- ^ "U.S., Swedish Navies Sign Agreement to Bilaterally Train on State-of-the-Art Sub" (Press release). United States Navy. 2005-03-23.
- ^ "Eide Transporter arrives San Diego" (Press release). Eide Group. 2005-06-22.
- ^ "Swedish Submarine HMS Gotland Arrives in San Diego". United States Navy. 2005-06-30. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
- ^ "Why is the U.S. Navy Leasing a Swedish Submarine?". The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs. Retrieved 2005-03-04.[dead link]
- ^ "Swedish Submarine Continues to Play Important Role in Joint Training" (Press release). United States Navy. 2005-12-20.
- ^ "US Navy to continue hunt for Swedish sub". The Local. 2006-04-18. Retrieved 2006-07-21.
- ^ "Gotland extends US stay for another year" (Press release). Kockums AB. 2006-06-13. Retrieved 2006-07-21.
- ^ "HMS Gotland’s Stirling propulsion system basis of success in the USA" (Press release). Kockums AB. 2007-05-09.
- ^ "Pentagon: New Class Of Silent Submarines Poses Threat". KNBC. 2006-10-19. Retrieved 2006-07-21.
- ^ Polmar, Norman (March 2006). "Back to the Future". U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings 132 (3): 22–23. 0041-798X.
- ^ "US Navy Struggles to Recapture, Keep ASW Proficiency". The Nav Log. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
- ^ "SSK Gotland Class (Type A19) Attack Submarine, Sweden". Naval Technology. Retrieved 2008-04-06.
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