Submarines can attack targets with devastating force.
Torpedoes launched by submarine have the ability to pull down other submarines as well as large surface ships at long ranges. Moreover, missiles launched from submarines can reach land targets hundreds of miles from their position.
While offensive capabilities of submarines have always been impressive, submarine defense systems have faced a particular issue: a submerged submarine can be exposed to attacks coming directly from above, particularly airborne attacks launched at short range. This issue finds itself reinforced since it is inherent to submarine operations to require the submarine to either stay at periscope depth, travel at the surface or stay moored at a pier.
Therefore, the challenge regarding defensive capabilities of submarines has been to build a launch system able to launch from a submerged submarine small defensive weapons (anti-air missiles for example), vertically.
At Euronaval 2018, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems has introduced its 360° multi-layered suite of maritime defense systems which provides naval forces defense against modern naval threats. Amongst the systems included in this multi-layered naval defense are the followings submarine defense systems:
- Shade™ defense suite, a comprehensive torpedo defense solution for submarines, which select automatically appropriate defense programs and preprogrammed anti-torpedo countermeasures. It comprises three components: a defense programmer, a launcher controller and up to 32 launchers for firing up to 32 decoys.
- Torbuster™, a fourth generation torpedo countermeasure for submarines which provides effective defense against all types of acoustic homing torpedoes by means of combined soft and hard kill. Torbuster™ is the first hard kill torpedo defense solution to be effective even in shallow water.
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems has also developed expendable countermeasures, designed to respond simultaneously to multiple acoustic torpedoes of various types (active, passive, and pactive) that could be fired from ASW helicopters, ships, or other submarines, reinforcing the submarine defense systems:
- Scutter™ is a self-propelled, third generation reactive, expendable torpedo countermeasure, capable of protecting a submarine from passive and active acoustic homing torpedoes. Scutter is selecting the appropriate response amongst a threat library, based on intelligence programmed by the user. Scutter is launched immediately following a torpedo alert, moving automatically to operating depth.
- Subscut™ is a third generation reactive, expendable countermeasure which generates deception signals to deceive acoustic torpedoes. In response to a torpedo alert, Subscut is launched from the signal ejector, which automatically triggers the propulsion of the countermeasure to a preset depth where it hovers.