France’s Future SSNs: The Barracuda Class

May 10/18: One more for Paris The French government will buy a fifth Barracuda class nuclear attack submarine. A spokesperson for the Armed Forces Ministry confirmed in a statement that the Defense Minister Florence Parly made the decision on May 2nd. The draft multiyear budget that is set to run from 2019-2025 includes the funding for six Barracuda class submarines, delivery of which is scheduled for 2025. The Barracuda SSN program started in 2006 when France’s Defense Ministry awarded a contract for nuclear-propelled fast attack submarines to state-owned warship builder DCN and nuclear energy group Areva-TA. The Barracuda program will meet the French Navy’s operational mission needs by providing replacements for its 6 current Rubis Amethyste class nuclear attack submarines. The Barracuda’s are roughly the same size as the Royal Navy’s existing SSN Trafalgar Class boats, and twice the size of the current vessels. The program’s total value was initially set at then $11.13 billion but has since risen to over $12.32 billion.