N700119 ISRAELI GAL CLASS SUBMARINE

The units of the Gal class (Type 540) are classic (diesel-electric) fighter submarines, which were part of the Israeli Navy (hereinafter: MW) in the years 1976-2002. A single ship was 45 m long, 4.7 m wide, and her submarine displacement was 600 tons. The maximum underwater speed was up to 17 knots. The armament consisted of eight 533 mm torpedo tubes. The Gal-class vessels were built at the Vickers shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness, UK, but their design was largely based on the German Type 206. The main differences were the constructions of the conning tower and the rear of the ship, especially the stern. The Gal-class ships replaced the S and T-class ships in the Israeli Navy and were the first submarines built to exact Israeli specifications. During the service, units of this type were often modernized, and these changes mainly involved the assembly of more and more perfect electronics. At least one ship of this type took part in the Lebanon war in 1982. The Gal-class ships have been replaced by Dolphin-class ships, and one of them is on display at the Naval Museum in Haifa.