Portugal Gets A Pair of type 214 submarines

[sonicboom]

Portugal Gets A Pair
August 6, 2010: Portugal has received the first of two Type 214 submarines from Germany. The second one will arrive early next year. The Type 214 is a 1,700 ton, 65 meter/202 foot long boat, with a crew of 27. It has four torpedo tubes and a top submerged speed of 35 kilometers an hour.

Maximum diving depth is over 400 meters/1,200 feet. The Type 214 is similar to the earlier Type 209 and Type 212. The two Portuguese 214s are equipped with an air-independent propulsion (AIP) system. This enables the sub to stay underwater for over a week at a time.

Greece and South Korea have also received Type 214s. Pakistan and Turkey are also negotiating to buy 214s. So far, only five Type 214s are in service, with twenty more to be built. The Type 214 is an export version of the 1,500 ton Type 212 (which Germany and Italy use). At least a dozen officials involved in the Portuguese 214 purchase are under investigation, in Germany and Portugal, for bribes paid in the course of the negotiations. The Portuguese boats cost $500 million each.