HSwMS Västergötland (Vgd)
HSwMS Västergötland on 7 February 2005.
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History | |
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Sweden | |
Name | Västergötland |
Namesake | Västergötland |
Ordered | 10 January 1983 |
Builder | Kockums |
Launched | 19 July 1986 |
Commissioned | 27 November 1987 |
Decommissioned | 1997 |
Motto |
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Nickname(s) | Vgd |
Fate | Sold to Singapore in 2005 |
Singapore | |
Name | Swordsman |
Namesake | Swordsman |
Acquired | 4 November 2005 |
Commissioned | 30 April 2013 |
Homeport | Changi |
Status | Active |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | |
Displacement |
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Length | 60.5 m (198 ft 6 in) |
Beam | 6.1 m (20 ft 0 in) |
Propulsion |
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Speed | 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) (Surfaced) 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) (Submerged) |
Complement | 28 officers and enlisted |
Armament |
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HSwMS Västergötland (Vgd), is named after Västergötland, Sweden. She is the lead ship of the Västergötland-class submarines.
Development[]
The submarine design combined the best properties from the preceding Sjöormen and Näcken classes. Submarines of the Västergötland class had greater submarine hunting capacity than previous classes, partly due to the fact that they were equipped with a new modern submarine torpedo. The submarines in the Västergötland class were able to fire up to six heavy and six light wire-guided torpedoes at the same time against different targets, a world record of perhaps dubious benefit that probably still stands today.[1]
The Västergötland class included the submarines HSwMS Södermanland and HSwMS Östergötland. After significant upgrades, these two submarines were reclassified to a new Södermanland class.
Service in Sweden[]
The submarine served in the Swedish Navy for almost 25 years and was then sold to Singapore in 2005 together with HSwMS Hälsingland.
Service in Singapore[]
HSwMS Västergötland was renamed RSS Swordsman. Singapore's Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) signed an agreement with Kockums for the supply of two Archer-class (formerly Västergötland-class) submarines to the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) on 4 November 2005. More than 20 years old and previously in reserve with the Swedish Navy, the submarines were transferred to the RSN on completion of the modernisation and conversion for operation in tropical waters. RSS Archer was launched on 16 June 2009. RSS Archer underwent sea trials following its launch and is now operational. The second submarine, RSS Swordsman, was launched on 20 October 2010. The Archer-class submarines entered service in 2013 and replaced the Challenger-class submarines that were retired in 2015.[2]
Gallery[]
HSwMS Västergötland's badge.
References[]
- ^ "Baltic Sea". Corporal Frisk. Retrieved 2020-07-30.
- ^ Ahlquist, Erik. "HMS Östergötland på slutövning". Försvarsmakten (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-07-30.
- Västergötland-class submarines
- Ships built in Malmö
- 1986 ships
- Archer-class submarines
- Republic of Singapore Navy
- Sweden stubs
- Submarine stubs