The plan to adopt a towed-array sonar has been known for a while, but this is the first time I’ve seen specifics:
> Three of the four Samuel Beckett-class P60 OPVs (built by Babcock at Appledore between 2012-19) will be upgraded with towed array sonar.
>
> From 2027, for the first time, the Irish Navy will have the ability to detect underwater threats. Thales was contracted in June 2025 to supply three CAPTAS-1 systems in a deal worth around €60 million (£51 million) with an option for a fourth system.
The OPVs are not designed with noise sanitation in mind, and CAPTAS-1 is something of a cheap and cheerful capability, but this at least brings persistent underwater detection capability to the Irish forces to complement their Maritime Patrol Aircraft. Ireland still lacks any platform that can drop a torpedo onto something that the sonar detects, but as well as the potential for cueing partner’s (likely French or British) assets onto something they detect, the ability to detect an underwater platform could also be enough to deter clandestine efforts at subsea sabotage by itself. If they were to push for the ability to actually attack something that’s detected my guess would be [UAVs dropping torpedos](https://www.navylookout.com/killing-submarines-by-drone/), which is something under experimentation in a few places.
Irish navy lmao
British defence nerds have no awareness of how ick inducing their interest in Ireland’s defence is to irish people. Some are obsessed about it. Some are aroused by it. Even making a statement about it with a British flair in r/europe is a matter of suspicion to us. And none of them understand why.
They just just jump in and purchase some Type 26 and help faciliate expansion/growth in this program. Ordering 2-4 more ships would extend the production plans for multiple factories involved. All these different types of ships across EU increases costs so much.
They could even have a contract in place to sell them back to UK in case war breaks out.
4 comments
The plan to adopt a towed-array sonar has been known for a while, but this is the first time I’ve seen specifics:
> Three of the four Samuel Beckett-class P60 OPVs (built by Babcock at Appledore between 2012-19) will be upgraded with towed array sonar.
>
> From 2027, for the first time, the Irish Navy will have the ability to detect underwater threats. Thales was contracted in June 2025 to supply three CAPTAS-1 systems in a deal worth around €60 million (£51 million) with an option for a fourth system.
The OPVs are not designed with noise sanitation in mind, and CAPTAS-1 is something of a cheap and cheerful capability, but this at least brings persistent underwater detection capability to the Irish forces to complement their Maritime Patrol Aircraft. Ireland still lacks any platform that can drop a torpedo onto something that the sonar detects, but as well as the potential for cueing partner’s (likely French or British) assets onto something they detect, the ability to detect an underwater platform could also be enough to deter clandestine efforts at subsea sabotage by itself. If they were to push for the ability to actually attack something that’s detected my guess would be [UAVs dropping torpedos](https://www.navylookout.com/killing-submarines-by-drone/), which is something under experimentation in a few places.
Irish navy lmao
British defence nerds have no awareness of how ick inducing their interest in Ireland’s defence is to irish people. Some are obsessed about it. Some are aroused by it. Even making a statement about it with a British flair in r/europe is a matter of suspicion to us. And none of them understand why.
They just just jump in and purchase some Type 26 and help faciliate expansion/growth in this program. Ordering 2-4 more ships would extend the production plans for multiple factories involved. All these different types of ships across EU increases costs so much.
They could even have a contract in place to sell them back to UK in case war breaks out.