F21 heavy weight torpedo HWT 21" 533 mm Naval Group

Submarine Weapon System
F21 heavy weight torpedo

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 02

10/26

The F21 is a heavy-weight torpedo developed by Naval Group for the French Navy to replace the F17 torpedo.

It is designed to neutralize enemy ships and submarines and capable of operating in deep waters and near coastal areas with high levels of noise and dense shipping.

It is planned to gradually equip all French submarines, starting in 2018. The contract includes the development and delivery of about one hundred F21 torpedoes and their integration into French submarines. Naval Group delivered a batch of six torpedoes to the French Navy in November 2019. It has also been selected for the Brazilian Navy with the first batch handed over in January 2020. On 16 June 2026 the Dutch Ministry of Defence and Naval Group signed a contract for the supply of F21 Mk2 heavyweight torpedoes to equip the future Orka class submarines of the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN). As a result of this contract, the RNLN will become the first SSK fleet within NATO to operate the F21 torpedo.

The F21 was to be a development version of the Italian Black Shark torpedo. In 2008 France signed a development contract for 93 heavy torpedoes for its nuclear submarines, to be delivered from 2015. The original plan called for a derivative of the Black Shark to be built by a joint venture between DCNS, Thales and WASS, but they fell out and DCNS will now be developing the F21 Artemis with Thales and Atlas Electronic. The F21 shares similarities with the Black Shark, including an electric motor driven by an aluminium silver-oxide (AgO-Al) battery and a contra-rotating propeller.

Manufacturer:
Naval Group / Thales / Atlas Elektronik

Specifications:
Type: submarine launched heavy-weight torpedo
Diameter: 21 in (533 mm)
Length: 6 meters (19.7 feet)
Mass: 1,550 kg (3,420 lb)
Range: 27 NMI / 50 km, max.
Speed: 50 knots, max. (93 km/h)
Propulsion: Electric; Al-AgO battery (Aluminum-Silver Oxide)
Engine: contra-rotating direct-drive brushless motor
Guidance System: wire guided
Homing: acoustic
Warhead: 200 kg (440 lb) PBX B2211 high-explosive
Detonation mechanism: proximity fuze

Current and future operators:
French Navy
Brazilian Navy
Royal Netherlands Navy

source: wikipedia, Naval Group

images

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 04

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 11

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 08

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 09

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 05

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 06

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group dcns 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 07

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 10

f21 heavy weight torpedo hwt naval group 21-inches 533mm attack submarine navy 03

| seaforces.org | Weapon Systems start page |