German submarine U-31 (S181)

History
Germany
Name	U-31
Builder	Nordseewerke, Emden; Howaldtswerke, Kiel;
Launched	20 March 2002
Commissioned	19 October 2005
Status	in service.
Class and type	Type 212A
General characteristics
Class and type	Type 212
Type	submarine
Displacement	1,450 tonnes (1,430 long tons) surfaced; 1,830 tonnes (1,800 long tons) submerged;
Length	56 m (183.7 ft); 57.2 m (187.66 ft) (2nd batch);
Beam	7 m (22.96 ft)
Draft	6 m (19.68 ft)
Installed power	1 x MTU-396 16V (2,150 kW); 1 x Siemens Permasyn electric motor Type FR6439-3900KW (2,850 kW)
Propulsion	1 MTU 16V 396 diesel-engine; 9 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells, 30–40 kW each (U31); 2 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells each with 120 kW (U32, U33, U34); 1 Siemens Permasyn electric motor 1700 kW, driving a single seven-bladed skewback propeller;
Speed	20 knots (37 km/h) submerged, 12 knots surfaced
Range	8,000 nmi (14,800 km, or 9,196 miles) at 8 knots (15 km/h) surfaced; 3 weeks without snorkeling, 12 weeks overall;
Endurance	Surface 14,800 km at 15 km/h, Subsurface 780 km at 15 km/h, 3,000 nmi at 4 kn,
Test depth	over 700 m (2,296 ft)
Complement	5 officers, 22 men
Sensors and ; processing systems	CSU 90 (DBQS-40FTC), Sonar: ISUS90-20, Radar: Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 I-band nav.,
Electronic warfare ; & decoys	EADS FL 1800U suite
Armament	6 x 533 mm torpedo tubes (in 2 forward pointing groups of 3) with 13 DM2A4, A184 Mod.3, Black Shark Torpedo, IDAS missiles and 24 external naval mines (optional)

U-31 (S181) is a Type 212A submarine of the German Navy, and the lead ship of her class.

U-31 was built by TKMS, with construction taking place at the shipyards of Thyssen Nordseewerke of Emden and Howaldtswerke at Kiel. Launched on 20 March 2002, U-31 was commissioned alongside her sister ship U-32 by German Minister of Defence Peter Struck in Eckernförde on 19 October 2005. U-31 is propelled by one diesel engine and an electric motor driven by nine fuel cells, making the submarine virtually undetectable.

Korvettenkapitän Bert Petzold is^[when?] the submarine's commanding officer.^{[citation needed]}

^ "MTU 16V 396 diesel engine". Archived from the original on 2006-12-06. Retrieved 2006-10-08.
^ Holger Naaf: Die Brennstoffzelle auf U 212 A (PDF, German). Bundesanstalt für Wasserbau, Wehrtechnische Dienststelle für Schiffe und Marinewaffen Eckernförde, 23. September 2008.
^ "Uboote Klasse 212A". Retrieved 2013-08-19.
^ "Deutsche Marine TV-Interview" (in German). Retrieved 2007-04-17.
^ "Dette er ubåtsjefens våte drøm - nyheter". Dagbladet.no. 2010-11-18. Retrieved 2011-12-27.

History

Germany
Name	U-31
Builder	Nordseewerke, Emden Howaldtswerke, Kiel
Launched	20 March 2002
Commissioned	19 October 2005
Status	in service.
Class and type	Type 212A
General characteristics
Class and type	Type 212
Type	submarine
Displacement	1,450 tonnes (1,430 long tons) surfaced 1,830 tonnes (1,800 long tons) submerged
Length	56 m (183.7 ft) 57.2 m (187.66 ft) (2nd batch)
Beam	7 m (22.96 ft)
Draft	6 m (19.68 ft)
Installed power	1 x MTU-396 16V (2,150 kW); 1 x Siemens Permasyn electric motor Type FR6439-3900KW (2,850 kW)
Propulsion	1 MTU 16V 396 diesel-engine^[1] 9 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells, 30–40 kW each (U31) 2 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells each with 120 kW (U32, U33, U34)^[2] 1 Siemens Permasyn electric motor 1700 kW, driving a single seven-bladed skewback propeller
Speed	20 knots (37 km/h) submerged, 12 knots surfaced^[3]
Range	8,000 nmi (14,800 km, or 9,196 miles) at 8 knots (15 km/h) surfaced 3 weeks without snorkeling, 12 weeks overall
Endurance	Surface 14,800 km at 15 km/h, Subsurface 780 km at 15 km/h, 3,000 nmi at 4 kn,
Test depth	over 700 m (2,296 ft)^[4]
Complement	5 officers, 22 men
Sensors and processing systems	CSU 90 (DBQS-40FTC), Sonar: ISUS90-20, Radar: Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 I-band nav.,
Electronic warfare & decoys	EADS FL 1800U suite
Armament	6 x 533 mm torpedo tubes (in 2 forward pointing groups of 3) with 13^[5] DM2A4, A184 Mod.3, Black Shark Torpedo, IDAS missiles and 24 external naval mines (optional)