''Espadon'' was a
''Narval''-class submarine
A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...
of the
French Navy
The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...
. Along with sister boat
''Marsouin'', the boat was the first French submarine to steam under
sea ice
Sea ice arises as seawater freezes. Because ice is less density, dense than water, it floats on the ocean's surface (as does fresh water ice). Sea ice covers about 7% of the Earth's surface and about 12% of the world's oceans. Much of the world' ...
. The boat is currently a
museum ship
A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...
.
Career
''Espadon'' was commissioned in 1960.
In 1961, as she served as a target for mock torpedo exercises, ''Espadon'' was hit by two inert torpedoes, damaging her propeller. She nevertheless managed to surface, but had to be towed to Toulon.
In September of the same year, while cruising underwater, ''Espadon'' collided with the submarine ''
Laubie'', sustaining extensive damage to her bow and to the front of her sail.
On 13 August 1963 a fire in the torpedo room wounded and intoxicated four sailors, one of whom later died of his wounds.
In May 1964, ''Espadon'' and ''Marsouin'' steamed under sea ice in the
Norwegian Sea
The Norwegian Sea (; ; ) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to the northeast. In the southwest, it is separate ...
as far as 70° north.
''Espadon'' undertook significant modifications from 1966 to 1968, notably upgrading the boat's sonar, sail and rudders.
''Espadon'' has been a
museum ship
A museum ship, also called a memorial ship, is a ship that has been preserved and converted into a museum open to the public for educational or memorial purposes. Some are also used for training and recruitment purposes, mostly for the small numb ...
at the "ville-port" of
Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France, in traditional Brittany.
The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Oc ...
in the
German-built submarine base since 1987.
See also
*
List of submarines of France
The submarines of France include Nuclear submarine, nuclear attack submarines and nuclear ballistic missile submarines of various List of submarine classes, classes, operated by the French Navy as part of the Submarine forces (France), French Subma ...
Sources and references
Sous-marin d'escadre ''Espadon'' netmarine.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Espadon (S637)
French Narval-class submarines
Ships built in France
1958 ships
Cold War submarines of France
Museum ships in France