HMS Trafalgar (S107)

	HMS Trafalgar, 2008
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Trafalgar
Namesake	Battle of Trafalgar
Ordered	7 April 1977
Builder	Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering, Barrow-in-Furness
Laid down	15 April 1979
Launched	1 July 1981
Commissioned	27 May 1983
Decommissioned	4 December 2009
Homeport	HMNB Devonport, Plymouth
Fate	Awaiting Disposal
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Trafalgar-class submarine
Displacement	Surfaced: 4,500 to 4,800 t (4,700 long tons; 5,300 short tons); Submerged: 5,200 to 5,300 t (5,200 long tons; 5,800 short tons);
Length	85.4 m (280 ft)
Beam	9.8 m (32 ft)
Draught	9.5 m (31 ft)
Propulsion	1 × Rolls-Royce PWR1 nuclear reactor; 2 × GEC steam turbines; 2 × WH Allen turbo generators; 3.2 MW; 2 × Paxman diesel generators 2,800 shp (2.1 MW); 1 × 7-bladed conventional propeller; 1 × motor for emergency drive; 1 × auxiliary retractable prop;
Speed	Over 30 knots (56 km/h), submerged
Range	Unlimited
Complement	130
Electronic warfare ; & decoys	2 × SSE Mk8 launchers for Type 2066 and Type 2071 torpedo decoys; RESM Racal UAP passive intercept; CESM Outfit CXA; SAWCS decoys carried from 2002;
Armament	5 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes with stowage for up to 30 weapons:; Tomahawk Block IV cruise missiles; Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes;
Service record
Operations:	Operation Veritas (Afghanistan)

HMS Trafalgar is a decommissioned Trafalgar-class submarine of the Royal Navy. Unlike the rest of the Trafalgar-class boats that followed, she was not launched with a pump-jet propulsion system, but with a conventional 7-bladed propeller.^[3] Trafalgar was the fifth vessel of the Royal Navy to bear the name, after the 1805 Battle of Trafalgar.

Operational history

In 2012 a Royal Navy submariner was jailed for 8 years for trying "to pass secrets to the Russians that could have undermined Britain's national security"; one element of this was information on "a secret operation undertaken by HMS Trafalgar.^[4]^[5]

Combat history

After Operation Veritas, the attack on Al-Qaeda and Taliban forces following the September 11 attacks in the United States, Trafalgar entered Plymouth Sound flying the Jolly Roger on 1 March 2002. She was welcomed back by Admiral Sir Alan West, Commander-in-Chief of the fleet and it emerged she was the first Royal Navy submarine to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles against Afghanistan.^[6]

Grounding incidents

In July 1996, Trafalgar grounded near the Isle of Skye in Scotland.^[7]

In November 2002, Trafalgar again ran aground close to the Isle of Skye, causing £5 million worth of damage to her hull and injuring three sailors. She was travelling 50 metres below the surface at more than 14 knots when Lieutenant-Commander Tim Green, a student in the "Perisher" course for new submarine commanders, ordered a course change that took her onto the rocks at Fladda-chuain, a small but well-charted islet. Commander Robert Fancy, responsible for navigation, and Commander Ian McGhie, an instructor, both pleaded guilty at court-martial to contributing to the accident. On 9 March 2004 the court reprimanded both for negligence. Green was not prosecuted, but received an administrative censure.^[8]

In May 2008 it was reported that the crash was caused by the chart being used in the exercise being covered with tracing paper, to prevent students marking it.^[9]

Decommissioning

Trafalgar was decommissioned on 4 December 2009 at Devonport.^[10]

References

^ Jane's Fighting Ships, 2004-2005. Jane's Information Group Limited. p. 796. ISBN 0-7106-2623-1.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Bush, Steve (2014). British Warships and Auxiliaries. Maritime Books. p. 12. ISBN 978-1904459552.
^ ^a ^b Graham, Ian, Attack Submarine, Gloucester Publishing, Oct 1989, page 12. ISBN 978-0-531-17156-1
^ Hopkins, Nick (12 December 2012). "Royal Navy submariner jailed for trying to pass secrets to Russia". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
^ Cheston, Paul; Razaq, Rashid (13 November 2012). "Royal Navy petty officer admits trying to give nuclear submarine secrets to Russia". Evening Standard. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
^ Trafalgar Returns
^ House of Commons Hansard Written Answers (publications.parliament.uk)
^ "Latest Scotland, UK & World News - The Daily Record". dailyrecord.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
^ Dawar, Anil (23 May 2008). "Submarine's £5m repair bill blamed on tracing paper". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
^ "Submarine's final sailing to base". BBC News. 10 November 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2022.

External links

Royal Navy HMS Trafalgar (royalnavy.mod.uk)
MaritimeQuest HMS Trafalgar pages (maritimequest.com)
The BBC - Pictures of Trafalgar's final voyage (news.bbc.co.uk)

[Janes-1] Jane's Fighting Ships, 2004-2005. Jane's Information Group Limited. p. 796. ISBN 0-7106-2623-1.

[Steve_Bush_2014-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Bush, Steve (2014). British Warships and Auxiliaries. Maritime Books. p. 12. ISBN 978-1904459552.

[Graham,_Ian_1989,_page_12-3] Graham, Ian, Attack Submarine, Gloucester Publishing, Oct 1989, page 12. ISBN 978-0-531-17156-1

[4] Hopkins, Nick (12 December 2012). "Royal Navy submariner jailed for trying to pass secrets to Russia". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2022.

[5] Cheston, Paul; Razaq, Rashid (13 November 2012). "Royal Navy petty officer admits trying to give nuclear submarine secrets to Russia". Evening Standard. Retrieved 9 September 2022.

[6] Trafalgar Returns

[7] House of Commons Hansard Written Answers (publications.parliament.uk)

[8] "Latest Scotland, UK & World News - The Daily Record". dailyrecord.co.uk. Retrieved 7 August 2016.

[9] Dawar, Anil (23 May 2008). "Submarine's £5m repair bill blamed on tracing paper". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 August 2016.

[10] "Submarine's final sailing to base". BBC News. 10 November 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2022.

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v t e Trafalgar-class submarines
Trafalgar Turbulent Tireless Torbay Trenchant Talent Triumph
Preceded by: Swiftsure class Followed by: Astute class
List of submarines of the Royal Navy List of submarine classes of the Royal Navy

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 2002
Shipwrecks	19 Mar: Belmonte 17 May: USS Spiegel Grove 4 Jun: USS Hepburn 12 Jun: USS Wainwright 5 Jul: USS Rathburne 8 Jul: USS White Plains 10 Jul: USS Harold E. Holt 26 Sep: Le Joola 6 Oct: USS Okinawa 9 Oct: USS Towers 31 Oct: ROCS Dang Yang Oct: Elisabeth Smit 5 Nov: HMAS Hobart 19 Nov: Prestige Nov: ROCS Lao Yang 4 Dec: USS Caron 14 Dec: Tricolor Unknown date: Regina Maris
Other incidents	7 Jul: HMS Nottingham 22 Oct: Boka Star 6 Nov: HMS Trafalgar
2001 2003

History
HMS Trafalgar, 2008
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Trafalgar
Namesake	Battle of Trafalgar
Ordered	7 April 1977
Builder	Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering, Barrow-in-Furness
Laid down	15 April 1979
Launched	1 July 1981
Commissioned	27 May 1983
Decommissioned	4 December 2009
Homeport	HMNB Devonport, Plymouth
Fate	Awaiting Disposal
Badge
General characteristics ^[1]
Class and type	Trafalgar-class submarine
Displacement	Surfaced: 4,500 to 4,800 t (4,700 long tons; 5,300 short tons)^[2] Submerged: 5,200 to 5,300 t (5,200 long tons; 5,800 short tons)^[2]
Length	85.4 m (280 ft)^[2]
Beam	9.8 m (32 ft)^[2]
Draught	9.5 m (31 ft)^[2]
Propulsion	1 × Rolls-Royce PWR1 nuclear reactor 2 × GEC steam turbines 2 × WH Allen turbo generators; 3.2 MW 2 × Paxman diesel generators 2,800 shp (2.1 MW) 1 × 7-bladed conventional propeller^[3] 1 × motor for emergency drive 1 × auxiliary retractable prop
Speed	Over 30 knots (56 km/h), submerged^[2]
Range	Unlimited^[2]
Complement	130^[2]
Electronic warfare & decoys	2 × SSE Mk8 launchers for Type 2066 and Type 2071 torpedo decoys RESM Racal UAP passive intercept CESM Outfit CXA SAWCS decoys carried from 2002
Armament	5 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes with stowage for up to 30 weapons: Tomahawk Block IV cruise missiles Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes
Service record
Operations:	Operation Veritas (Afghanistan)