Visby Swedish Stealth Navy Ship

stealth navy ship

The Visby (K31) Swedish stealth navy ship is able to reduce the radar cross section by 99% hiding the ship from the radar instruments of the enemy. As the race to the top navy ship in the world are no longer won by speed and large canon port holes, Sweden commissioned the Swedish Defense Materiel Administration and Kockums to design and build a stealth ship that can sneak up to the enemy undetected. What results is the fast and stealthy Visby (K31) warship; one of the pioneering stealth ships in Sweden.

Visby (K31)’s design

The plastic laminate hull of this navy ship makes it very strong while remaining lightweight and stealthy – the hull is made of a PVC core laminated by carbon fiber and vinyl. The turbine is fueled by combined diesel and gas able to proper the ship to 35 knots over short a distance and 15 knots during on a long-haul voyage. The ship integrates automation technology such as the 9LV mk3 combat management system to reduce the crew to only 43 sailors. It weighs a mere 600 tons with length of 72 meters and width of 10.4 meters making it highly maneuverable even in rough waters.

Weapons onboard

This stealth navy ship is equipped with anti-ship and anti-missiles weapons aside from its 127 millimeter rocket-propelled grenade launchers and 400 millimeter torpedo tubes. The Visby (K31) also has general purpose gun that can fire 20 rounds per minute reaching 17,000 meters. When not in use, the canon barrel can be folded into the turret to reduce the ship’s radar signature. It has the latest electronic countermeasure capabilities that keep a watchful eye to the sky and the surface for missile and other ballistic threats. From patrol and reconnaissance navy ship, Visby (K31) can quickly become deadly if the circumstances ask it to be.

Other cunning capabilities of the Visby

Although looking small, the Visby (K31) Swedish naval ship is able to land an AgustaWestland A109M helicopter on its upper deck to refuel and load ammunition. This makes the ship ready for battle together with Sweden’s mighty naval fleet. It’s designed to evade submarine and mine attacks and to hunt and sink a submarine if needed. Moreover, the ship is just one of its class, and in 2012, another even more hi-tech fully loaded version the Visby is expected to be delivered to the Swedish Navy. There’s more to see from this stealth class!

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