Suffren (S635), the French Navy’s first Suffren-class (Barracuda) nuclear-powered attack submarine (SSN), was commissioned into service on 3 June in Brest, according to French Minister of Defense Sébastien Lecornu’s official Twitter account.
Naval Group, a French shipbuilder, was given a contract in December 2006 to build six Barracuda next-generation SSNs. The French Navy’s ageing fleet of five Rubis Améthyste-class SSNs will be gradually replaced by the Suffren class.
Suffren was laid down on December 19, 2007, and launched on July 12, 2019. It was transferred to the French Navy in November 2020, and has been undergoing trials since then in preparation for its induction into regular service.
