Submarine Technology

A comprehensive overview of the modern submarine and a vision of the future of this formidable weapon.

Comprising 17 didactic chapters, this 144-page amply illustrated volume provides a comprehensive overview of the modern submarine and delivers a vision of the future of this formidable weapon.

It addresses questions concerning the state of the art in the design and construction of today's submarines — vessels capable of remaining submerged almost indefinitely and practically undetectable. At a global level, very few countries, France among them, possess genuine expertise to design and build such strategic assets in complete autonomy.

In these complex fields, naval architecture has evolved profoundly across all disciplines (materials, hydrodynamics, hydroacoustics, energy, automation…) and in its processes (scientific computing, modelling, algorithms, production engineering, robotics…). The purpose of this work is precisely to demonstrate the significant changes and current trends, illuminated by one of France's foremost specialists in the field. Its author, Alain Bovis, presents a unique panorama in French-language technical literature, and constitutes a remarkable reference work for all those wishing to understand the challenges and prospects opened up by this highly confidential and mysterious field of high technology. As naval strategy experts often say, the credibility of a navy rests largely on the potential of its submarine forces.

The author also stresses the vital importance of the crews, without whom these platforms would naturally remain engineers' dreams.

A graduate of the École Polytechnique and a qualified engineer from ENSTA, Alain Bovis enjoyed a long career at DGA and DCNS (now Naval Group). He has held various positions in research, engineering and industrial management. He is currently president of the Académie de marine and president of the Association Technique Maritime et Aéronautique.