Engineering:German submarine U-33 (S183)

Short description: Submarine

U-33
History
Germany
Name:	U-33
Builder:	Howaldtswerke, Kiel
Laid down:	30 April 2001
Launched:	September 2004
Commissioned:	13 June 2006
Status:	In active service
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-33 (S183) is the third Type 212A submarine of the German Navy.

It was laid down 30 April 2001 by HDW in Kiel, launched in September 2004 and commissioned on 13 June 2006.

Service history

U-33 is currently part of the 1st Ubootgeschwader, based in Eckernförde. The submarine's first mission was participation in Operation Active Endeavour in 2007.