The Royal Netherlands Navy will upgrade its four Walrus-class submarines with the second generation escape system HABETaS. A contract for the delivery of eight HABETaS-units was signed on the 3rd June 2009 between Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (HDW), a company of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, Marine Force International LLP and the Dutch Defense Material Organisation (Defensie Materieel Organisatie).
The contract includes the delivery and integration of the newly developed HABETaS-components into the existing submarines as well as training and documentation for the handling and maintenance of the system.
Rescuing submarine crews without outside assistance has always been burdened with technical limitations concerning escape depth and minimum supply pressures. With HABETaS, the maximum escape depths is almost doubled and the number of escapees increases significantly.
The new system was developed by HDW in Kiel, advanced marine innovation technology subsea (AMITS) ltd. in Road Gosport (GB) and bfa See- und Luftausrüstung in Augsburg. HABETaS will be installed on the submarines at the Dutch Navy Base in Den Helder (NL) and work is planned be completed within the next two years.
ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems AG, with its head office in Hamburg, Germany, is part of ThyssenKrupp Technologies AG within the ThyssenKrupp Group. With its technological competence, extensive portfolio and continuous innovations the corporate group, being the umbrella organisation for shipyards in Germany, Sweden and Greece and various marine engineering companies, represents one of the leading systems houses in European shipbuilding.
