Germany To Sell Israel A Sixth Dolphin Class Submarine

The Israeli navy has contracted with Germany for a sixth Dolphin-class submarine, to be built at the Howaldtswerke-Deutche Werft AG (HDW) shipyard, in the Baltic city of Kiel.

According to the Jerusalem Post:

“Christian Schmidt, [Germany’s] secretary of state for defense, told the Post that the contract was signed a few weeks ago and that Germany had agreed to subsidize its cost…. The submarines under construction will be fitted with a new [AIP] propulsion system…. Schmidt said that Germany was looking to increase its defense cooperation with Israel and was specifically interested in learning from the IDF about training and military doctrine. He said that Germany was also considering buying the Heron TP long-range unmanned aerial vehicle later this decade to replace the Heron 1 it is operating in Afghanistan.

The Israeli Navy already has two additional Dolphins being built that wil be delivered later this year.

The Dolphin is a pretty neat little craft with a nasty sting and a cruising range of 4,500 km/ 2,700 miles. That makes some potentially interesting targets in Iran or Hezbollah's bases in Lebanon easily reachable for Israel's “Popeye Turbo” cruise missiles, which can be fired from four of the ten torpedo tubes, which can also fire torpedoes or anti-ship missiles like Boeing’s UGM-86 Harpoons.The Dolphins also have a wet and dry compartment for deploying underwater frogmen and commandos.

The Israelis are rumored to have done tests with a nuclear-capable version of the Popeye as well, and if they follow their usual procedure, they will also provide the new sub with a few innovations all their own.