Dakuwaqa Class Submarine

[Uzb3kistan]

Dakuwaqa Class Submarine

Introduction[/color]
Being the largest branch in the military, the Naval Forces realized the need for a large Submarine force in it's arsenal. Not only did they require a large force, but also a force with a technological advantage, that's not one to mess with. The military needed a submarine that could roam the waters undetected. The Navy needed a submarine with a range unmatched, and a bite more powerful than before. The Shaitan Corporation responded with a new submarine called the Dakuwaqa Class Submarine. One of the objectives of a next-generation submarine was to either eliminate the sail, or make a very small one. The newest technologies put together does this, by making the sail incredibly smaller than previous designs such as the Virginia Class.

The Dakuwaqa Class SSN is considered by the Navy as one of it's best in the fleets. Featuring some of the best technologies to be seen in Submarine warfare, the Dakuwaqa Class keeps the Republic's Submarine Force on par with the other Naval powers around the world. Designed to replace the Republic's older main Nuclear-Attack Submarines, the Dakuwaqa Class is the most widely used in the Navy's Submarine Force. Specific new technologies implemented into the Dakuwaqa Class SSN cuts the cost of the submarine, and is therefore easier mass produced and faster built.

Design[/color]
In keeping with indigenous Uzb3kistan design, the Dakuwaqa Class Submarine almost resembles that of the Virginia Class Submarine. The Dakuwaqa Class has a length of 387 feet, and a beam of 44 feet, with a submerged displacement (long tons) of 7,100. The Dakuwaga Class has been designed with long-term technological innovation in mind. The Dakuwaqa Class is designed to be very flexible and universal. This allows for technological insertion and innovation in the future, without having to redesign the hull and consequently designing a new submarine. The design of the hull and new sail shape gives it a hydrodynamic quality which, not only gives the submarine the ability to cut through the waters quicker, but to give the submarine a larger depth and avoiding pressure by allowing the water to disperse around the hull easier.

With a frame made out of Titanium , giving the Submarine a high mass efficiency, a high strength-to-weight ratio, and a lighter weight. Although expensive, the costs are made up with the lower maintenance costs. The Titanium frame also protects the submarine from certain dangers that haunted previous crews. Such as the crushing of the hull due to pressure depth. The Titanium allows the submarine to go deeper than ever before, and it can even hold up to some older torpedoes, like the Mk 48 ADCAP torpedoes. The hull of the ship is made of Shaitan Corporation designed special advanced polymer matrix composite materials, or advanced PMCs. Giving it an even higher strength and protection against outside aggression. The composite materials are then reinforced by extra layers of titanium, depleted uranium, and anechoic materials to add extra strength and stealth to the hull; and an active degaussing system to help prevent MAD detection. Also, the Navy was concerned about the periscope, if it were outdated. The periscope sticking out of the water could be easily spotted by the enemy. The Shaitan Corporation heard the Navy's need of a new system allowing them to rid the use of the traditional periscope used for so many years. They answered with the now famous photonic masts. Naval powers all over the globe, including the Virginia Class have these, which are basically basically arrays of high-resolution cameras. The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine is equipped with two photonic masts, which will send the visual images to flat-panel displays in the control room.

Propulsion[/color]
Although some Dakuwaqa Class Submarines vary, most are driven by the Shaitan Corporation designed Advanced Shaftless Propulsion System (ASPS). The Shaitan Corporation scientists have developed a new propulsion system, deemed the Advanced Shaftless Propulsion System (ASPS) for Uzb3kistan's nuclear-powered submarines. The Shaitan Corporation has developed a submarine propulsion system that can overcome selected technological barriers that have a significant impact on a submarine's infrastructure and cost. The ASPS features a shaftless propulsor that eliminates the need for a traditional shaft that penetrates the submarine's pressure hull. This revolutionary change in submarine design will dramatically reduce the ship's weight, size and cost, freeing up critical space for mission payloads. The system provides advanced, permanent magnet motor (PMM) and electric drive technologies, which will allow the Uzb3kistan Navy to realize its vision of affordable, integrated power systems on board warships. This solution provides proven, best-value technology that is lighter, smaller and more power-dense than any other previous Naval electric drive available. The new system utilizes a common ship power system architecture that can transfer electric power from propulsion and ship service systems to advanced electric weapons, sensors and countermeasures. The integrated power systems equipment will provide increased fuel efficiency, reliability and commonality benefits in electric ship architecture, which provides, stealthier hull forms, reduced reliability on logistics, "plug-and-play" maintainability, larger payload and mission capacity, and reduced crew sizes. The system also features many more Auxiliary Maneuvering Units, which are small propulsors at the bow and stern of the nuclear submarine, used to greatly enhance the vessel’s maneuverability.Though rare, some different submarines in the Dakuwaqa Class feature Pebble bed Reactors with the ASPS.

Electronics - Sensors and Countermeasures
The electronics systems is a vital to a submarine's success. Making sure the Dakuwaqa Class SSN had electronics up to par, or even better than some of the leading Naval powers in the world was one of the Shaitan Corporation's biggest priorities. When it comes to detection systems in Naval Warfare, it's vital who can detect another first, and farther away. It was in the Shaitan Corporation's best interest, therefore, to design and develop detection systems that will see the enemy, long before the enemy sees you. Also, the Shaitan Corporation understands the importance of Countermeasures in submarine warfare, because once that torpedo is in the water and is heading toward the Dakuwaqa Class SSN, the SSN needs to have the right equipment to either eliminate that threat, throw it off, or escape it.

The Dakuwaqa Class SSN is equipped with a TB-29 submarine thin-line towed array, a Shaitan Corporation designed AN/SQR-74 Tactical Towed Array SONAR (TACTAS). The TB-29 submarine thin-line towed array is a Commercial Off-The-Shelf version of the legacy TB-29 towed array. Compared with the legacy array, the TB-29 uses COTS telemetry to significantly reduce the unit cost while maintaining equivalent array performance. The TB-29 is longer than the thin-line TB-23 and has a sensor location system. The AN/SQR-74 Tactical Towed Array SONAR is the next step up from the AN/SQR-19 Tactical Towed Array SONAR. It now features three separate parallel lines, which are over a mile, in which the individual hydrophones use fiber optic coils and lasers. Tiny changes in the behavior of the laser light will result when the coils are influenced by sound waves in the surrounding ocean. Analysis of such data promises to greatly increase the sensitivity of the array to the presence of enemy submarines and other targets. The new system provides a 300nm range of detection.

The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine is also equipped with other systems which are linked to supercomputers designed for recognition, targeting, and RADAR/LIDAR enhancement, etc,etc. Equipped, is the Shaitan Corporation developed AN/UQQ-7 bow-mounted spherical array sonar acoustic system, which has a range of about 63nm. Also equipped is the newly Shaitan Corporation designed SC/LUR-16 modern hull-mounted sonar that gives the SSN a full 72nm. The SC/LCL-9 LIDAR gives the Dakuwaqa Class Submarine the ability to actively search, and do it silently. The SC/PGS-16 is currently the primary Surface Search Radar for the Submarine fleets, giving them a search capability of about 330 miles on perfect environment conditions.

The Countermeasure electronics on the Dakuwaqa Class have proved to be up to par with the leading Naval technologies around the globe. The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine is equipped with 10 FCD-1 "Brilliant" Decoys, which is intended to conspicuously mimic the maneuvering and noise signature of the parent sub. The purpose is to draw an enemy's attention away from the parent sub, allowing the parent sub to sneak away from the battle area undetected, or to escape enemy torpedoes because those torpedoes will be lured toward the decoy. The decoy contains a propulsion system and fuel supply like a regular torpedo. But the decoy is unarmed, and the space available because there is no explosive warhead is used instead for additional computers and sonar emitters. This gives the decoy the ability to be programmed -- before launching -- with complex instructions regarding how to behave regarding changes in depth, course, speed, etc., and also to give off appropriate noises like a real full-sized submarine. The decoy might be programmed to act like a different class of sub than the parent, to further confuse and distract the enemy. The term "brilliant" refers to an advanced state of on-board artificial intelligence routines that allows the decoy to make autonomous real-time decisions once launched that further aid the tactical goals of its parent sub during combat or intelligence-gathering missions.

However, like anything, the decoy system isn't failsafe. Therefore the Navy doesn't like to rely on one system for defense against an incoming torpedo. Thus, the Shaitan Corporation responded with the design of a new "Active out-of-phase emission" system. The SH/MEI-05 is the newest implemented technology in the Navy. What Active out-of-phase emission, and this system, does is weaken the echo which an enemy sonar receives from a submarine’s hull, by actively emitting sound waves of the same frequency as the ping but exactly out of phase. The out-of-phase sound waves mix with and cancel those of the echoing ping. This increases the submarine's stealth technology and less likeliness of a direct hit with a torpedo. However, say the enemy submarine already has a good firing solution and drops torpedoes heading toward your submarine? No problem; this worry by the Naval Forces was heard by the Shaitan Corporation scientists when they developed the SH/MEI-05A, an advanced version of the SH/MEI-05 that not only the Active out-of-phase emission on enemy submarines, but takes it a step farther with incoming torpedoes and other inbounds. Using the same technology, only more advanced; it actively emits back to the incoming torpedo to make the Submarine seem, to the inbound, that it is in a different location, and therefore causing the inbound to miss it's target by overshooting or undershooting and detonating prematurely. There are also more systems mounted in the Dakuwaqa Class SSN that help prevent possible enemy torpedo collision. The Dakuwaqa Class has a total of six deployable ATDS guns; which are an underwater "anti-torpedo artillery" system, which shoots rapidly at inbounds, and is guided by SONAR and LIDAR. Mounted on the submarine are six smaller 8 inch torpedo tubes, designed to launch Shaitan Corporation designed countertorpdeos, that target incoming enemy torpedoes.

Armament
With the new Shaftless Propulsion System (ASPS), freeing up a lot of critical space for mission payloads, much more weaponry can be stored on the SSN. The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine houses a safe load of 310 weapons, including anywhere from torpedoes, Vertical Launch weapons, mines, small anti-torpedoes, etc. The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine has ten forward 21 inch torpedo tubes, capable of launching any torpedoes of the UT series, or of similar size. The Dakuwaqa Class has a total of six retractable ATDS guns; which are an underwater "anti-torpedo artillery" system, which shoots rapidly at inbounds, and is guided by SONAR and LIDAR. Mounted on the submarine are six smaller 8 inch torpedo tubes, designed to launch Shaitan Corporation designed countertorpdeos, that target incoming enemy torpedoes. The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine features a ten tube VLS system, designed to launch any of the Uzb3kistan VLS missiles. The Dakuwaqa Class Submarine would have originally featured a fourteen tube VLS (using some of the opened up space due to the ASPS), however, Shaitan Corporation engineers swapped out four VLS tubes to put in a giant tube designed to handle 1000mm torpedoes. The Navy needed something to launch any new Ultra-heavyweight torpedoes, including future indigenous designs, as well as purchased foreign designs (most notably the Draka-made 'Tempests'). Also, the Dakuwaqa Class SSN houses three deployable unmanned mini-submarines for both combat and reconnaissance missions. Also deployable are two Advanced Delivery System mini-submarines that are new battery-powered mini-submarines for the transport of special forces from a parent nuclear submarine to the forward operational area and back, within a warm and dry shirtsleeves environment. Also, although unintentional, they can be used as 'escape pods' if the unfortunate were to occur; however, there's a very small chance that anyone may be deployed before the parent submarine is destroyed, as it takes time to man and deploy it (more information on the technology post about the system).

Propulsion: Nuclear Plant with Advanced Shaftless Propulsion System (ASPS), and Electric Integration.
Displacement: 7,100 tons submerged
Length: 387 feet
Beam: 44 feet
Crush Depth: 3.8km
Armament: Ten 21in. torpedo tubes, mining system, 6 ATDS guns, 6 counter-torpedo 8in. tubes, 10 VLS tubes, one 1000mm VLS tube, 3 deployable unmanned mini-submarines
Special Warfare: 2 deployable Advanced Delivery System mini-submarines
Countermeasures: 10 FCD-1 "Brilliant" Decoys, SH/MEI-05 and SH/MEI-05A systems, ATDS guns, and counter-torpedoes
Detection Systems: TB-29 submarine thin-line towed array, AN/SQR-74 Tactical Towed Array SONAR, AN/UQQ-7 bow-mounted spherical array sonar, SC/LUR-16 modern hull-mounted sonar, SC/LCL-9 LIDAR, and SC/PGS-16 Surface Search Radar
Crew: 98 officers and men/women, 10 Special Forces men/women (optional)

Cost Per Unit: 2.51 Billion USD
Production Rights: Not Available