Bad luck does not leave the Perle nuclear-powered submarine (S606). The Rubis-type vessel in a dry dock in Toulon, currently undergoing a large-scale reconstruction after a fire, once again faced the fire that broke out on board. Luckily, the incident did not cause serious losses, and the firefighting operation was completed on the night of September 26-27. Flames appeared in the forward section of the ship, in the food storage room. Insulating materials are most likely to have ignited.
After the fire was discovered yesterday around 12.45, all civilian workers were evacuated from the unit, firefighters from the Toulon naval port and sailors joined the work, and firefighters from Marseille were also brought in to help (the Marseille fire brigade is issued by the French Navy, as well as the Parisian – French land forces). Due to the difficult access to the source of the fire, and thus the difficulty in determining whether it was possible to eliminate all the outbreaks of the fire, the operation lasted several hours.
L’incendie à bord du sous-marin nucléaire d’attaque Perle à Toulon est éteint, on fait le point https://t.co/KMCiY7JV9Z pic.twitter.com/r2VnIpJCed
– Var-matin (@Var_Matin) September 27, 2022
-ADVERTISEMENT-
The previous fire occurred on June 12, 2020. Perle was then – just like now – in a dry dock and undergoing renovation works. The fire appeared in the bow compartment, the fight with the element lasted fourteen hours, during which the fire consumed almost all the bow compartments. The situation was managed only after flooding the interior of the unit with extinguishing foam. 100 firefighters and 150 other people supporting rescue operations took part in the fire action.
The size of the losses could have been much larger, but in preparation for the overhaul, the nuclear reactor along with fuel, weapons, batteries and diesel fuel were removed from the ship. However, the fire ruined the effects of renovation works carried out from January 2020.
Hier, un sinistre s’est déclaré dans un local dédié au stockage de vivres situé en zone avant du SNA Perle, en arrêt technique à Toulon.
Il n’a occasionné que des dégâts mineurs sans impact sur la fin du chantier. Aucun blessé ni dommage environnemental ne sont à déplorer. pic.twitter.com/avWRn9sHoQ– Chef d’état-major de la Marine (@amiralVandier) September 27, 2022
Experts from the Naval Group, Marine Nationale and Direction Générale de l’Armement conducted a detailed damage analysis. Initially, it was assessed that the deformation of the Perle rigid hull (made of 80 HLES steel, characterized by an increased yield point) caused by very high temperature may be irreversible and indicate scrapping. However, a feasibility study for the repair was prepared, which was completed with a positive recommendation, and the French administration decided to renovate it. The scale of the damage required an unconventional approach to the subject. It was decided to transplant the entire fore section from another ship, already decommissioned. The donor was Saphir, launched in 1979 and withdrawn in July 2019 as the first of six Rubis ships.
First, both units were cut open in the middle part, just behind the kiosk, and then the parts to be preserved were fitted and welded together. The resulting “Frankenstein monster” measures 140 centimeters more than the original design (originally 73.6 meters) and has a displacement of 68 tons (originally 2,670 tons when submerged). Completion of work and return to service of the ship is planned for mid-2023. The rebuilt Perle is to remain in service until the 1930s.
Finally, let us note that the fire took place on that part of Perle that until recently was part of Saphira. The command of the French Navy has already stated that yesterday’s fire will not affect the renovation schedule or the return of the submarine to the sea.
There are still five ships of this type in service: Rubis, Casabianca, Émeraude, Améthyste and Perle, the youngest in this group (launched in September 1990). They are the smallest nuclear submarines in the world. They are armed with ECAN F17 Mod 2 torpedoes, designed to combat submarines and surface ships, and the SM 39 Exocet missiles. In total, they can carry fourteen torpedoes and Exocets. The DLT D3 system is used to control the fire. Optional armament are TSM 3510 mines (maximum twenty-eight pieces), set from torpedo tubes. Rubies, they are gradually being replaced by the Barracuda-type nuclear strike submarines.
See also: Chinese nuclear-powered torpedo – journalistic duck or not?
US Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Todd A. Schaffer
