A244-S

Italian lightweight torpedo

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Maximum speed 30/39 kn [16/20 m/s]

Guidance
system

active / passive acoustic homing

Steering
system

CIACIO-S seeker

Launch
platform

Vessel / aircraft / helicopter

The A244-s is an Italian lightweight, fire-and-forget torpedo employed for anti-submarine warfare. It can be launched from surface vessels or aircraft and locates the target using an acoustic seeker.

Description

The torpedo uses a CIACIO-S seeker, consisting of an acoustic homing head containing the transducer assembly, transmitter, and related Beamforming circuits, and a frame housing all the remaining electronic components. The homing head is capable of active, passive, or mixed modes for closing onto its target. It can also discriminate between decoys and real targets in the presence of heavy reverberations especially emitted pulses and signal processing.

The latest version is the A244-S mod.3 torpedo, manufactured by Leonardo.^[1]

Operators

Current operators

Algerian National Navy - 25 ordered in 2011
Argentine Navy - 540 ^[2]
Bangladesh Navy
People's Liberation Army Navy - 50 (ET52 torpedo) ^{[n 1]}
Chilean Navy - 781
Ecuadorian Navy - 72
Indian Navy - 450 (NST58 torpedo, another derivative)
Indonesian Navy - 88
Islamic Republic of Iran Navy - 12
Libyan Navy - 12
Royal Malaysian Navy - 75
Nigerian Navy - 18
Pakistan Navy - 12
Peruvian Navy - 72
Polish Navy - 6 (for familiarization before delivery of MU-90)
Republic of Singapore Navy - 250 Mod.1; 100 Mod.3
Swedish Navy - 80
Republic of China Navy - 120
Turkish Navy - 50
Ukrainian Navy - ordered in 2010 for Project-58250 frigates
United Arab Emirates Navy - 50 Mod.1 ordered April 1997 for 29.5 million dollars; 24 + 25 ordered in 2005 for 12 million Euros
Bolivarian Navy of Venezuela - 150

Future operators

Bulgaria

Bulgarian Navy: In October 2022 Bulgarian government decided the purchase A244-S for the two future patrol ships of Bulgarian navy. Bulgarian Navy will receive 24 A244-S mod.3 torpedoes and supporting equipment for the price of 39.3 mln euros. The torpedoes also will be used from Bulgarian navy Eurocopter AS565 Panther helicopters. The first ship is under construction and will be commissioned in 2025.

Bibliography

Funnell, Clifford, ed. (February 2007). Jane's Underwater Warfare Systems, 2007-2008 (19th ed.). Jane's Information Group. ISBN 978-0-7106-2815-2.
Friedman, Norman (February 2006). The Naval Institute Guide to World Naval Weapon Systems (5th ed.). Naval Institute Press. ISBN 9781557502629.

Footnotes

^ The ET52 is the Chinese development of the Italian Alenia A244-S light ASW acoustic homing torpedo and is considered by many domestic Chinese sources as the equivalent of the A244-S Mod.2 version. ET52 is essentially the A244-S torpedo with technologies of US Mk 46 Mod.2 torpedo incorporated.