The Perle (S606), the first-generation nuclear attack submarine of the French Navy
severely damaged by the fire last year will be reborn by cutting it in two and welding the salvageable half to part of another decommissioned submarine
According to the French Ministry of Defense
the 14-hour intense fire when the Perle nuclear attack submarine was in dry dock for repairs in June 2020
rendering the front of the boat unusable
However, the rear of the nuclear submarine, 73 meters long, displaced 2,600 tons, was not damaged in the fire
Luckily for the French navy, one of the Perle's sister boats, the Saphir, which was retired from service in 2019
was awaiting dismantling at a shipyard in the northwestern port of Cherbourg
The Saphir's front section was structurally sound
and French officials determined it could be mated with the rear of the Perle to make one serviceable attack submarine
According to CNN, The damaged Perle was moved from Toulon to Cherbourg on a semi-submersibile ship in December
Workers cut the Perle in half in February and did the same to the Saphir in March, according to a news release from French shipbuilder Naval Group
At the beginning of this month, the back half of the Perle and the front half of the Saphir were put on "walkers"
at the Cherbourg shipyard so they could be carefully aligned and then welded together, the Naval Group release said
Naval Group spokesperson Klara Nadaradjane said the joining work would be completed in the coming months
The resulting submarine, which will still be called the Perle
will be about four-and-a-half feet (1.4 meters) longer than either of its predecessors
to accommodate a "junction area" while the miles of cables and pipes that run through the sub will be spliced together, the release said
The junction area will also provide room for new living quarters, adding a bit of space for the crew of 70 submariners
All that work will be rehearsed using a three-dimensional digital model before being attempted aboard the submarine, Naval Group said
The task involves 100,000 hours of engineering studies and 250,000 hours of industrial work by 300 people, it said
The Perle, commissioned in 1993, was the newest of what once were six Rubis-class nuclear submarines in the French fleet
The Saphir, the second boat in the class, was commissioned in 1984, serving 35 years before its decommissioning
The Rubis-class subs are scheduled to be replaced in coming years by the new Barracuda nuclear-powered submarines
the first of which, the Suffren, was delivered to the French navy in November
But the sixth Barracuda sub isn't expected to join the fleet until 2030
so the half-and-half Perle will be needed to keep French attack sub numbers at the required six, according to Naval Group
Franck Ferrer, programs director for the Services Division of Naval Group
said in January that the new Perle was expected to be moved back to Toulon
late this year for more technical work and upgrades to its combat systems before entering the French fleet in early 2023
"Carrying out this type of project in these circumstances"
"i.e. repair work that involves joining the fore and aft ends of two sister ships, is of course a first in the modern history of Naval Group," Ferrer said