The MU90 lightweight torpedo developed by the European Economic Interest Group EUROTORP formed by DCNS, THALES and the Italian company WASS, is attracting growing interest among world navies.
Two new navies have decided to follow in the footsteps of the Australian Navy and acquire the MU90 in 2013, which now brings to 8 the number of Navies equipped with this system worldwide, DCNS said in a release, without disclosing the nationality of the navies.
So far, the torpedo has been in service in France, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Poland, and Australia.
With a success rate of over 90% during the evaluation campaign, the MU90 demonstrated its capacity to successfully complete its missions regardless of the environment and scenario. This degree of success has allowed the validation of its acceptance in operational service within the Australian fleet.
On August 14th 2013, the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) performed the first firing of a “war shot” MU90 lightweight torpedo. Launched from the ANZAC-class frigate “HMAS STUART”, the torpedo detected, classified then engaged with its shaped charge the submerged target, representative of a small-sized submarine.
Following Successful firing, the Australian Navy commissioned the MU90 torpedo, integrating it on all its ANZAC and FFG class frigates.
The combat launch represents the final step of an intensive evaluation campaign conducted over the last few years. Numerous exercise launches were performed to test the torpedo in different complex situations: in tropical waters, in very shallow waters (< 40m), over large distances (stand-off distance) and against submarines protected by countermeasures systems.
The an anti-submarine torpedo that operates in shallow waters, including congested areas, can be launched from ships or aircraft and has a range of between 7.7 miles and 15.5 miles depending on speed, which can reach over 50 knots.
[mappress] Naval Today Staff, January 20, 2014; Image: DCNS