September 1, 2022, will be remembered as a historic date for the Brazilian Submarine Force – the Brazilian Navy incorporated the first diesel-electric submarine of the four under development within the framework of Prosub, the S-40 Riachuelo, into its fleet.
The highlight of the delivery ceremony was the disembarkation of the employees of Itaguaí Construções Navais (ICN), in charge of the construction of the vessel, who left the submarine while the crew of the S-40 Riachuelo, commanded by frigate captain Edson do Vale Freitas, entered the ship.
The crew of the Riachuelo, after the closing of the ceremony, began the undocking work as the brand new submarine will complete another intense stage of practical training where missions that will demand the maximum capabilities of the new machine will be carried out.
The event was attended by the Minister of Defense, Paulo Sérgio Nogueira de Oliveira; the commander of the Brazilian Navy, Admiral Almir Garnier Santos; the Chief of Staff of the Fleet, Admiral Renato Rodrigues de Aguiar Freire; and the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Marcos Sampaio Olsen; and the General Director of ICN, André Portalis; among other military and civilian authorities.
“The Submarine Development Program is of strategic importance to the country. The construction of these new submarines within the scope of PROSUB fulfills two major objectives.
The improvement of the operational capacity of our Navy with a considerable increase of its deterrent power and the expansion of the protection of its jurisdictional waters, achieving a more effective presence in the South Atlantic and also the increase of our naval industry and the development of new technologies, contributing to the boost of the national economy with the creation of thousands of direct and indirect jobs,” said Minister Nogueira de Oliveira.
For his part, Admiral Santos emphasized that “the Riachuelo represents an investment for Brazilian society, in sovereignty, in the wealth of the Brazilian people. More than 20,000 direct and some 40,000 indirect jobs have already been created.
Moreover, the riches of our Blue Amazon are still incalculable. We are talking about something big and extremely important for the future of our country.”
RIACHUELO CLASS (S-BR)
The Riachuelo is the first of four conventional submarines with diesel-electric propulsion, allowing greater deterrent power in the 5.7 million km² of the so-called Blue Amazon, whose rich waters, seabed, and subsoil are important for economic, scientific, and environmental development purposes.
The S-40 Riachuelo, like its class brothers, is equipped with one of the most modern combat systems existing today, which brings together frontal and lateral hull sonars, a periscope equipped with a thermal sensor (night vision), and other technologies that allow the class to detect targets at enormous distances with precision.
The Riachuelo submarine has an overall length of 70.62 meters, a hull diameter of 6.2 meters, a surface displacement of 1,740 tons, and a submerged displacement of 1,900 tons. Its combat system has six weapon launch tubes capable of launching heavy electro-acoustic torpedoes, tactical underwater surface missiles, and deep water mines.
The armaments can also be fired from great distances, thus maintaining the submarine’s stealth. Weapons consist of heavy F21 fiber-optic guided smart torpedoes, Exocet anti-surface missiles fired from a submerged submarine, and naval mines (mine warfare), among others.
The Riachuelo class is endowed with the ability to search, find, identify and attack surface targets beyond the horizon line, something unheard of for the Submarine Force, as the Tupi class submarines and the unique Tikuna Class, while versatile, do not come even close to the vastly superior capabilities of the Riachuelo in all aspects, whether, in performance, sensor and weapons capability, depths to which they can dive and operational flexibility, as they have room for more fuel and supplies, and especially, a quarter equipped to receive combat divers and their equipment.
Despite observed delays in submarine delivery schedules totaling more than two years, the capabilities received more than compensate for the delay in delivery. The submarines will operate routinely from a megabase designed and built to manufacture, operate and maintain the submarines, as well as other technological means of the Brazilian Navy.
The S-41 Humaitá, the second submersible of the class, conducted its first functional dive test the day before the S-40 was delivered and, during the ceremony, remained moored alongside the Riachuelo, demonstrating that the schedule was being followed to the letter.
Due to various technologies and innovations, the Riachuelo class submarines are more versatile than the Tupi class submarines (Tupi, Tamoio, Timbira, and Tapajó) and are considered operationally superior to several submarines currently available in the world.
The boats have advanced sensors – such as a sonar array and periscopes with cameras for night vision – and a combat management system equipped with modern and complex algorithms, which enable the submarine to detect and classify targets at long distances.
The S-BRs also have greater autonomy than other Scorpène submarines due to a design change that included a midship section for increased accommodation and water tanks.
TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER
Through a technology transfer process, the S-BR is being constructed by Brazilian labor (engineers and technicians) with technical assistance from the French company Naval Group.
The nationalization program has already qualified some forty Brazilian companies to manufacture submarine components in more than one hundred projects, the main ones being: the manufacture of salt water valves by Micromazza, the manufacture of batteries by NewPower, and the manufacture of the anchor bearing by Miba.
For the development of conventional Brazilian submarines and, in the future, of the nuclear-powered submersible Álvaro Alberto, a naval complex was built in Itaguaí with several facilities, equipment, and specialized systems.
Today it is one of the most modern shipyards since the construction of submarines requires highly qualified labor and an equipped industrial park to execute the various manufacturing, commissioning, and testing activities.
All this requires the integration of sophisticated technologies, following strict quality and safety norms and standards.
“The Navy’s nuclear program is the backbone of the Brazilian nuclear program. We produce uranium pellets so Brazil’s Nuclear Industries can keep running – the reactors – Angra 1 and Angra 2, for example. The program allows dual use of this nuclear technology. In addition to the military, the pharmaceutical and food areas can also use this technology, providing technological, scientific, and medical development for Brazil,” said Santos.
TRAINING OF THE FIRST CREW
The training of the first crew lasted two years and four months and was divided into three stages: preliminary, on land, and on board. In the preliminary training, the crew underwent theoretical exams and individual interviews. A Preliminary Training Plan was also developed and executed by the Admiral Áttila Monteiro Aché Instruction and Training Center.
Instructors conducted the on-land and on-board training phases from Défense Conseil International, a partner company of the French Ministry of Defense, responsible for the international transfer of its military knowledge to the Armed Forces of friendly countries.
“We trained on the various systems of the submarine and conducted exercises to make the crew autonomous in the safe conduct of the environment. At sea, we conducted training aimed at driving the ‘Riachuelo’ and damage control so that everyone would have the ability to perform their duties safely and skillfully,” explained the S-40 commander.
With information from InfoDefensa