Combat Fleets

Chile's two new Scorpène-class attack submarines, O'Higgins, on sea trials in September 2004, and sister Carrera, will be the first foreign warships to be armed with the new Black Shark dual-purpose wire-guided heavy torpedo. Torpedo trials on the O'Higgins were conducted in November 2004. Chile's Scorpène-class can be armed with up to 18 of the Black Sharks, which are upgraded versions of the Italian A-184 torpedo. The torpedo is produced by Italy's Whitehead Alenia Sistemi Subacqui (WASS) and will also arm Scorpène-class boats purchased by the Royal Malaysian Navy. Additional Black Shark sales are likely in the near future. Improvements over older torpedoes include a new multibeam acoustic seeker, an acoustic wake-homing system, silver-zinc batteries, fiber-optic guidance link, brushless motor, and quieter propellers. Maximum speed of the weapon is reportedly 50 knots and its range is said to be 50 kilometers.