French Navy’s nuclear-powered attack submarine Tourville, the third in a series of six new Barracuda-class submarines, has entered into active service.
As informed, the vessel was commissioned on July 4. During the ceremony, the French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu also inaugurated the newly modernized Missiessy dry dock no. 2 in Toulon.
The objective of the modernized project was to prepare the French Navy to accommodate and maintain the new Barracuda-class units. Due to their size, the Barracuda reactors require infrastructure adapted to their technical specifications, but also to the nuclear safety standards that have been strengthened since Fukushima. This is the whole point of the Barracuda Support Infrastructure Program (ASB PI), it was noted.
Tourville, built by local shipbuilding major Naval Group, was delivered in November last year during a ceremony in Brest.
“The Tourville represents prodigious technological and therefore operational leaps. If we had to highlight just one, it would be its ability to deploy it for twice as long,” the minister emphasized.
This series of six SNAs is part of the Barracuda program, managed by the DGA in collaboration with the Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies Commission (CEA) for nuclear boilers. The goal of the program is to replace the aging Rubis -class submarines currently in service with the French Navy.
Measuring 99 meters in length and 8.8 meters in diameter, the Barracuda-class (Suffren-class) nuclear attack submarines displace 4,700 tons on the surface and represent a major advancement in French naval capabilities.
Powered by nuclear propulsion with a steam turbine and electric engines, they can reach speeds of 25 knots while submerged and dive to depths greater than 300 meters. These submarines are equipped with a versatile arsenal, including F21 heavy torpedoes for anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare, Exocet SM39 missiles for anti-surface strikes, and MdCN naval cruise missiles for deep strike missions.
Designed for integration into a naval force, they feature advanced communication systems and support the deployment of Special Forces.
The Barracuda-class also boasts low acoustic emissions for exceptional stealth, effective underwater detection capabilities, and extended autonomy, making them highly efficient, versatile, and mission-ready platforms for modern naval operations, according to the French Navy.
The first Barracuda-class submarine Suffren entered service in June 2022, while the second was commissioned in July 2023.