Second Swedish Gotland sub launched after mid-life upgrade

HSwMS Uppland, the second of two Royal Swedish Navy Gotland-class submarines, was launched at Saab’s Karlskrona shipyard on June 19.

The relaunch of the second air independent propulsion (AIP) submarine took place almost exactly 12 months after the first unit was relaunched as part of the upgrade.

The mid-life upgrades saw the submarines receive an additional 2 meter hull section to accommodate the third generation of the Stirling air-independent propulsion engine and a diver lock-out chamber in addition to combat management and ship management systems upgrades.

“Few shipyards around the world have the experience of completely modifying a submarine, creating almost a new ship. We are the only one having completed it twice within 12 months, first with HMS Gotland and now HMS Uppland,” said Gunnar Wieslander, Senior Vice President, head of Saab business area Kockums.

The updated version of Uppland and her sister ship Gotland are paving the way for the next generation of Swedish AIP submarines: the Blekinge-class (A26).

More than 20 new systems on-board the new Gotland-class will be implemented in the A26, which contributes to their de-risking for the A26. This also gives great training opportunities for the crew when they in the future deploy onboard the A26.

Manned by a crew of 25, HMS Uppland now measures 62 meters in length and displaces 1,580 tons (surfaced). It was built by Kockums in Malmö in the early 1990’s and commissioned in 1997.