(Click The Image To Enlarge)Mark 48 Torpedo Test (Image from Wikimedia)
Torpedo Tech Marches On -- Strategy Page
December 10, 2008: A German manufacturer, Atlas, has started production of a new version of its DM2A torpedo, for use in submarines and surface ships. The DM2A4 is a 1.4 ton weapon that is the first to use fiber optic wire guidance. This makes the wire guidance immune to any electronic interference. The DM2A4 has a max range of 50 kilometers and a top speed of 90 kilometers an hour. At longer ranges, lower speed (about 60 kilometers an hour) are used. The DM2A4 has improved countermeasures and sensors. It can detect ships by detecting metal, or the wake of a surface ship. Usually, it is driven, via the wire guidance, to the general vicinity of the target, where the torpedoes sensors can take over to hit the target ship. The DM2A4 can also be used as an UUVs (unmanned underwater vehicle) for reconnaissance, and then recovered. The DM2A4 is intended for use in non-nuclear subs, mainly the German made Type 214 boats. The DM2A4 is very similar, and may be superior to, the U.S. Mk48 torpedo. This is a 1.6 ton weapon, also 533mm (21 inches) in diameter, and is used in all American nuclear subs, as well as in Australia's diesel-electric boats. A new model (Mk48-7) is in the works, which will probably match the capabilities of the DM2A4. However, the exact capabilities of modern torpedoes are classified, lest potential targets use the information to develop better countermeasures.
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