The U.S. Navy has accepted the Dry Combat Submersible special purpose mini-submarine into service

The US Navy has received a special purpose mini-submarine. It is called Dry Combat Submersible (DCS) and is developed by Lockheed Martin.

Here's What We Know

Lockheed Martin this week officially announced that the DCS has achieved operational capability. The submersible is designed to transport divers to their destination. The mini-submarine will be used by the US Special Operations Forces.

The US company handed over three DCS units to the customer, for the construction of which it received more than $160 million in 2016. Within two years, the amount increased by another $120 million. Lockheed Martin plans to deliver another mini-submarine to the Special Operations Forces in the future.

According to the defence contractor, the DCS is 2.4 metres wide, 2.4 metres high and almost 12 metres long. The displacement of the submersible is approximately 30,000kg when fully loaded. The DCS can transport up to eight people in the landing compartment and the crew consists of two specialists.

The vehicle can descend to depths of up to 100 metres. The DCS is powered by electric motors that allow it to reach speeds of up to 9 kilometres per hour. It has a maximum range of almost 100 kilometres and an operating time of up to 24 hours.

The DSC was a derivative solution from the S351 Nemesis mini-submarine, which was developed by MSubs in the UK. The company is part of Lockheed Martin.

Source: Lockheed Martin