Collins-class submarine

HMAS Rankin, sixth submarine of the Collins class, underway in 2006
Class overview
Builders	Australian Submarine Corporation Kockums Civmec
Operators	Royal Australian Navy
Preceded by	Oberon class
Succeeded by	Attack class (Cancelled) Virginia class and SSN-AUKUS (Planned)[1]
Cost	A$5.1 billion (1999) for 6 units A$850 million (1999) per unit
Built	14 February 1990 – 18 March 2003
In commission	27 July 1996 – present
Completed	6
Active	6
General characteristics
Type	Diesel-electric submarine
Displacement	3,100 tonnes (3,100 long tons) (surfaced) 3,407 tonnes (3,353 long tons) (submerged)
Length	77.42 m (254.0 ft)
Beam	7.8 m (26 ft)
Draught	7 m (23 ft) at waterline
Installed power	3 × Garden Island-Hedemora HV V18b/15Ub (VB210) 18-cylinder diesel motors, 3 × Jeumont-Schneider generators (1,400 kW, 440-volt DC)
Propulsion	Main: 1 × Jeumont-Schneider DC motor (7,200 hp or 5,400 kW), driving 1 × seven-bladed, 4.22 m (13.8 ft) diameter skewback propeller Emergency: 1 × MacTaggart Scott DM 43006 retractable hydraulic motor
Speed	10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced and periscope depth 20 kn (37 km/h; 23 mph) submerged
Range	11,500 nautical miles (21,300 km; 13,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced 9,000 nmi (17,000 km; 10,000 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) periscope 480 nmi (890 km; 550 mi) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Endurance	70 days
Test depth	Over 180 m (590 ft) – actual depth classified
Complement	Originally 42 (plus up to 12 trainees) Increased to 58 in 2009
Sensors and processing systems	Sonar: Thomson Sintra Scylla bow and distributed sonar arrays Thales SHORT-TAS towed sonar array Thales intercept array Radar: Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 surface search radar Periscopes: Thales CK043 search periscope Thales CH093 attack periscope Combat system: Modified Raytheon CCS Mk2 (AN/BYG-1)
Electronic warfare & decoys	Condor CS-5600 ESM 2 × SSE decoys
Armament	6 × 21-inch (530 mm) bow torpedo tubes Payload: 22 torpedoes, mix of: Mark 48 Mod 7 CBASS torpedoes UGM-84C Sub-Harpoon anti-ship missiles Or: 44 Stonefish Mark III mines

The Collins-class submarines are Australian-built diesel-electric submarines operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). The Collins class takes its name from Australian Vice Admiral John Augustine Collins; each of the six submarines is named after significant RAN personnel who distinguished themselves in action during World War II. The six vessels were the first submarines built in Australia, prompting widespread improvements in Australian industry and delivering a sovereign (Australian controlled) sustainment/maintenance capability.

Planning for a new design to replace the RAN's Oberon-class submarines began in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Proposals were received from seven companies; two were selected for a funded study to determine the winning design, which was announced in mid-1987. The submarines, enlarged versions of Swedish shipbuilder Kockums' Västergötland class and originally referred to as the Type 471, were constructed between 1990 and 2003 in South Australia by the Australian Submarine Corporation (ASC).

The submarines have been the subject of many incidents and technical problems since the design phase, including accusations of foul play and bias during the design selection, improper handling of design changes during construction, major capability deficiencies in the first submarines, and ongoing technical problems throughout the early life of the class. These problems have been compounded by the inability of the RAN to retain sufficient personnel to operate the submarines—by 2008, only three could be manned, and between 2009 and 2012, on average two or fewer were fully operational. The resulting negative press has led to a poor public perception of the Collins class. After 20 years of service issues, the boats have finally provided high availability to the RAN since 2016.

The Collins class was expected to be retired about 2026, however, the 2016 Defence White Paper extended this into the 2030s.^[2][3] The Collins class life will now be extended and will receive an unplanned capability upgrade, including sonar and communications.^[2][3]

The initial replacement for the Collins class was to be a conventionally-powered version of the Barracuda-class SSN proposed by Naval Group of France, dubbed the Attack class. On 15 September 2021, in the face of growing delays and cost increases, the Australian government announced the cancellation of the contract with Naval Group, and that the replacement will be a nuclear-powered submarine fleet made in partnership with the United Kingdom and the United States.^[4][5]