Video and details of the first static immersion of the Spanish submarine 'Isaac Peral' S-81

@DefAviation ES 3·31·2023 · 21:47 0

The first of the Spanish S-80 series submarines, the "Isaac Peral" S-81, has passed a new milestone in her sea trials.

The 'Isaac Peral' S-81 sails for the first time with another Spanish Navy submarine
The first exit to the sea of the submarine 'Isaac Peral' S-81 of the Spanish Navy

The new submarine made his departure from the stands in April 2021 and her launching on May 7th of that same year. The sea trials were expected to be completed in 2022 and her delivery to the Spanish Navy would take place in February 2023, but in the end the sea trials have been delayed, which will postpone the delivery of the new ship until November of this year. The first static immersion was made this Thursday, in the waters of La Algameca Naval Station, in Cartagena, in front of the Navy Diving Center, as reported by the public company Navantia.

Navantia has indicated that yesterday's static immersion "is part of the safety milestones for the construction and testing of the S-80 submarine program and is carried out after navigation on the surface and prior to immersion navigations". The company adds: "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 led to perform their dive 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 she is delivered to the Navy."

Today Navantia has published the video of this first static immersion:

Let's see some details of the video below. In this image we see the "Isaac Peral" followed at a distance by the "Neptuno" A-20 Rescue Vessel of the Spanish Navy.

The S-81 accompanied by another Spanish Navy ship, specifically the Y124 slipway tug, one of the units of the Cartagena Arsenal Naval Train.

An enlargement of an image from the video in which we can better see the orange buoy that the submarine carried to mark its position after submerging. On the sail of the submarine we see its extended mast and the small hatches that close when it is folded.

The beginning of the dive, with the buoy floating. On the port side of the submarine we see a Spanish Navy launch, closely following the operation.

The S-81 with the hull already submerged. Only the sail and mast appear on the surface in this photo.

About to complete the dive. We see the buoy floating near the top of the sub's sail.

The submarine already submerged. Only the buoy and the mast betray its presence.

The S-81 returns to the surface, already at night. He carries the buoy to the port side.

The S-81 has a length of 80.81 meters, a size greater than that of the current submarines of the Spanish Navy, the Galerna class (its length is 67.57 meters). In addition, the S-81 measures 11.68 meters wide and 13.69 meters deep. Her hull has a diameter of 7.3 meters and the ship has a surface displacement of 2,695 tons. She will be equipped with six torpedo tubes and is expected to reach a speed of 19 knots with a range of 50 days.

This submarine will be the first of four units of its class. The second will be called "Narciso Monturiol" S-82 and is scheduled to be delivered to the Navy in December 2024. The third will be "Cosme García" S-83, with delivery scheduled for October 2026. And the fourth will be the "Mateo García de los Reyes" S-84, with delivery scheduled for February 2028.