HMS Gotland (Gtd)

HMS "Gotland" is an attack submarine of the Swedish Navy. It is the first of the "Gotland" class, which is the first operational submarine class in the world to use air-independent propulsion (AIP).

She was built by Kockums, launched in 1995 and subsequently commissioned in 1996. The AIP units use liquid oxygen with diesel as the propellant.

Lease to the United States Navy

In 2004, the Swedish government received a request from the United States of America to lease HMS "Gotland" – Swedish-flagged, commanded and manned, for a duration one year for use in anti-submarine warfare exercises. The Swedish government granted this request in October 2004, with both navies signing a memorandum of understanding on March 21 2005. [cite web | title=US Navy Leasing Swedish Gotland-Class Submarine | work=Deagel | url=http://www.deagel.com/news/US-Navy-Leasing-Swedish-Gotland-Class-Submarine_n000000395.aspx | accessdate=2004-11-05] [cite press release | url=http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=17621 | title=U.S., Swedish Navies Sign Agreement to Bilaterally Train on State-of-the-Art Sub |publisher=United States Navy | date=2005-03-23]

HMS "Gotland" was loaded onboard the Norwegian semi-submersible heavy-lift ship, MV "Eide Transporter", on May 10 2005, for a month-long voyage over the Atlantic Ocean and through the Panama Canal to Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego, California, where it arrived on June 27 2005. [cite press release | url=http://www.eide-gruppen.no/nyheten.cfm?nyid=144&lang=1 | title=Eide Transporter arrives San Diego | publisher=Eide Group | date=2005-06-22] [cite news | url=http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=18984 | publisher=United States Navy | title=Swedish Submarine HMS Gotland Arrives in San Diego | date=2005-06-30 | accessdate=2008-04-06] [cite web | title=Why is the U.S. Navy Leasing a Swedish Submarine? | work=The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs | url=http://www.jinsa.org/articles/articles.html/function/view/categoryid/164/documentid/2873/history/3,2360,656,164,2873 | accessdate=2005-03-04] After a couple weeks of getting accustomed to the new environment, the exercises with United States 3rd Fleet began on July 18 2005. [cite press release | url=http://www.news.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=21464 | title=Swedish Submarine Continues to Play Important Role in Joint Training | publisher=United States Navy | date=2005-12-20] The lease was extended for another 12 months in 2006. [cite news | url=http://www.thelocal.se/article.php?ID=3574 | publisher=The Local | title=US Navy to continue hunt for Swedish sub | date=2006-04-18 | accessdate=2006-07-21] [cite press release | url=http://www.kockums.se/News/060613gotland.html | title=Gotland extends US stay for another year | publisher=Kockums AB | date=2006-06-13 | accessdate=2006-07-21] [cite press release|url=http://www.kockums.com/News/070509gotland.html|title=HMS Gotland’s Stirling propulsion system basis of success in the USA|publisher=Kockums AB|date=2007-05-09]

HMS "Gotland" managed to penetrate the massive defensive measures of a carrier battle group undetected and snap several pictures of the USS "Ronald Reagan" during a wargaming exercise in the Pacific Ocean, effectively "sinking" the aircraft carrier. [cite news | url=http://www.knbc.com/news/10116514/detail.html?rss=la&psp=news | publisher=KNBC | title=Pentagon: New Class Of Silent Submarines Poses Threat | date=2006-10-19 | accessdate=2006-07-21] The exercise was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the US Fleet against modern diesel-electric submarines, which some have noted as severely lacking. [cite journal | last=Polmar | first=Norman | year=2006 | month=March | title=Back to the Future | journal=U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings | volume=132 | issue=3 | pages=22–23 | id=0041-798X | accessdate=] [cite web | title=US Navy Struggles to Recapture, Keep ASW Proficiency | work=The Nav Log | url=http://navlog.org/asw_feb06.html | accessdate=2008-04-06]

In July 2007, HMS "Gotland" departed San Diego for Sweden. [cite web | title=SSK Gotland Class (Type A19) Attack Submarine, Sweden | work=Naval Technology | url=http://www.naval-technology.com/projects/gotland/ | accessdate=2008-04-06]

Gallery

References