Vanguard class submarine - Definition and Overview

The Royal Navy's Vanguard class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), each armed with 16 Trident SLBMs, includes four boats: Vanguard (S28), Victorious (S29), Vigilant (S30), and Vengeance (S31), all built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd.

General characteristics

Vanguard Class Submarine

• Displacement: 15,900 tons submerged
• Length: 149.9 meters
• Beam: 12.8 meters
• Draught: 12 meters
• Complement: 14 officers, 121 ratings
• Propulsion: PWR2 reactor
• Armament:
  • 16 missile tubes capable of firing Trident D5 missiles
  • four torpedo tubes capable of firing Spearfish torpedoes
• Sensors:
  • sonar (bow, flank, active intercept, and towed arrays)
  • periscopes: (attack and search)
  • collision avoidance radar

External links

• opposition to Trident (http://www.tridentploughshares.org)
• http://www.royal-navy.mod.uk/static/pages/177.html