Strengths & Weaknesses of the Contenders for Australia's Submarine Replacement Programme

Plans to replace the existing Royal Australian Navy's (RAN) Collins-class submarines began in 2007 with the launch of "SEA 1000" also known as the Future Submarine Programme.

In February this year, the Australian Government announced the acquisition strategy for the Future Submarine Program and invited three countries: France, Germany and Japan to participate in a competitive evaluation process.

Here is our analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of each contender:

• The Japanese Soryu class;
• The German Type 216;
• The French evolution of SSN Barracuda

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