×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Infantry Arms Warships & Submarines Military Pay Chart (2023) Military Ranks
Advertisements
HOME
NAVAL WARFARE
MODERN FLEETS
COUNTRIES
SHIPBUILDERS
COMPARE
BY CONFLICT
BY TYPE
BY DECADE
BY CLASS
COLD WAR

Naval Warfare


HDMS Narhvalen (S320)


Diesel-Electric Attack Submarine [ 1970 ]



Two Narhvalen-class boats, including lead-boat HDMS Narhvalen S320, were built by Danish ship industry for the Royal Danish Navy - these based in the German Type 205 submarines.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 01/07/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

GO TO SPECIFICATIONS [+]
Advertisements
To strengthen its coastal patrol capabilities during the tumultuous Cold War years (1947-1991), the Royal Danish Navy invested in an indigenous submarine class which became the "Delfinen-class" (detailed elsewhere on this site). This group numbered four total boats of which all were designed, developed, and built in Denmark (the last of the group was funded by the United States to ease procurement costs). These boats operated from 1961 to 1990 and all have since been retired, marking the last Danish indigenously-originated submarines.

To bolster this undersea prowess at a time when the vaunted Soviet Navy was the enemy-of-the-day, the nation took on two more boats, these under the "Narhvalen-class" name and based in the West German "Type 205" coastal patrol attack submarines (detailed elsewhere on this site). The Danes secured a licensing deal with West German builder IKL to construct two of the Type 205 boats locally through the concern of Howaldtswerke at The Naval Dockyard of Copenhagen. The boats were appropriately modified to suit local Danish Navy requirements and ultimately led to HDMS Narhvalen and HDMS Nordkaperen being completed and commissioned into service.

The class was constructed from the period spanning 1965 to 1966 and launched in 1968-1969. HDMS Narhvalen (S320), the lead boat of the class, saw her keel laid down on February 16th, 1965. She was launched for evaluation and trials on September 10th, 1968 and ultimately commissioned for service on February 27th, 1970.

With a crew numbering just twenty-two (including four officers), the compact boat carried both passive and active sonar equipment and fielded a rather-traditional/conventional armament suite of 8 x 533mm (21") torpedo tubes. The boat could also be arranged to carry naval mines as needed. Internally, drive power stemmed from a twin marine diesel / single electric motor drive arrangement which provided for surfaced speeds of 12 knots and submerged speeds of 17 knots. 2 x Mercedes-Benz V12 diesel engines outputted 600 horsepower each for surfaced travel and 1 x SSW electric motor of 1,300 horsepower provided the needed power for submerged work. Range reached a maximum of 4,200 nautical miles. The hull was tested to a depth of 330 feet (100 meters).

When the Royal Danish Navy took on three ex-Kobben class boats from the Royal Norwegian Navy (these becoming the "Tumleren-class" in Royal Danish Navy service), it was decided to upgrade the Narhvalen-class boats to the same fighting standard and this work was undertaken from 1993 to 1995, resulting in an all-new, modernized propulsion scheme, new radar, a German sonar fit, French optics at the sail, and a British ESM suite.

With the loaning of the ex-Swedish submarine Nacken (becoming "Kronborg" in Royal Danish Navy service) in 2000, Narhvalen and her sister were relegated to second-line roles in Royal Danish Navy service for only a brief period, the former decommissioned in full on October 16th, 2003 and scrapped. Kronborg was used for an equally short amount of time, operating from 2001-2005 and returned to the Swedish Navy thereafter.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.
Advertisements

Specifications



Service Year
1970

Origin
Denmark national flag graphic
Denmark

Status
DECOMMISSIONED
Destroyed, Scrapped.
Complement
22
PERSONNEL


Class
Narhvalen-class
Number-in-Class
2
VESSELS
Ships-in-Class


HDMS Narhvalen (S320); HDMS Nordkaperen (S321)


National flag of Denmark Denmark
(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)
Submerged Attack
Traveling under the surface to search, track, and / or engage or reconnoiter areas.
Offshore Operation
Activities conducted near shorelines in support of allied activities.
Maritime Patrol
Active patroling of vital waterways and maritime areas; can also serve as local deterrence against airborne and seaborne threats.
Fleet Support
Serving in support (either firepower or material) of the main surface fleet in Blue Water environments.


Length
144.0 ft
43.89 m
Beam
15.0 ft
4.57 m
Draught
14.0 ft
4.27 m
Displacement
460
tons
Disp.Submerged
510
tons


Installed Power: 2 x Mercedes-Benz V12 diesel engines developing 600 horsepower each; 1 x SSW electric motor generating 1,300 horsepower; 1 x Shaft.
Surface Speed
10.0 kts
(11.5 mph)
Submerged Speed
17.0 kts
(19.6 mph)
Range
4,201 nm
(4,835 mi | 7,781 km)


kts = knots | mph = miles-per-hour | nm = nautical miles | mi = miles | km = kilometers

1 kts = 1.15 mph | 1 nm = 1.15 mi | 1 nm = 1.85 km
8 x 533mm (21") torpedo tubes. Also support for carrying / dispensing naval mines as needed.


Supported Types


Graphical image of an aircraft aerial torpedo
Graphical image of a naval mine


(Not all weapon types may be represented in the showcase above)
None.


Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War period
Military lapel ribbon for early warship designs
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2


Ribbon graphics not necessarily indicative of actual historical campaign ribbons. Ribbons are clickable to their respective naval campaigns / operations / periods.

Advertisements




Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies


2023 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons.

View day-by-day actions of the American Civil War with CivilWarTimeline.net. View day-by-day actions of World War II with SecondWorldWarHistory.com.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)