Everything about Oberon Class Submarine totally explained
For the 1920s O class submarines, sometimes referred to as the Oberon
class, please see Odin class submarine
The
Oberon-class was a thirteen-ship class of diesel-electric
submarines of the
Royal Navy, and were based on the successful
Porpoise-class submarine. The
Oberons were far more successful in the export market than their predecessor, with fourteen boats being operated by the navies of
Australia (HMAS
Oxley,
Otway,
Onslow,
Ovens,
Orion and
Otama),
Canada (HMCS
Ojibwa,
Okanagan,
Onondaga,
Olympus and
Osiris),
Brazil (
S 20 Humaitá,
S 21 Tonelero and
S 22 Riachuelo),
Egypt and
Chile (
Hyatt and
O'Brien).
Design
The class differed from the
Porpoises in that they used QT28 steel instead of the UXW used in the
Porpoise. This was easier to fabricate and gave a significant increase in diving depth. Additionally, they made use of
glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) in the casing and other additional improvements helped the class become even more silent than the Porpoises.
Additional new electronics and weapons, including in 1970 the
Mark 24 Tigerfish torpedo. The
RAN and
RCN O-boats were upgraded to fire American
Mark 48 torpedoes. The Canadian
Oberons also used the NT-37 torpedo before the Mk.48 was introduced. The Australian boats were later updated to be equipped with the subsonic anti-ship
Harpoon missile. HMAS
Ovens was only the second conventional submarine in the world - and the first
Oberon - to fire a sub-surface launched Harpoon missile. This occurred off the island of
Kauai in
Hawaii in 1985, where the target was successfully hit from over the horizon. Consequently, the boat's designation changed from SS to SSG.
Like the previous
Porpoises, the
Oberons were far quieter than their American counterparts. They performed remarkably well in clandestine operations, performing surveillance and inserting special forces, vital during their heyday in the
Cold War. These operations were primarily carried out by the British across Arctic Europe; the Canadians across the Arctic
Pacific; and the Australians throughout south-east Asia and as far north as the
Sea of Japan.
The
Oberons were arguably the best conventional submarine class of its time. The surviving one,
S 22 Riachuelo, was converted into a museum at the Brazilian Navy Cultural Center (
Espaço Cultural da Marinha Brasileira) on Rio de Janeiro.
The
Oberon class was briefly succeeded in RN service by the
Upholder-class submarine, later sold to the Canadian Navy after refit as the
Victoria-class .
Further Information
Get more info on 'Oberon Class Submarine'.
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