HMS Talent in Dry Dock The End of an Era at Devonport

Nestled in the industrial embrace of HMNB Devonport, a Trafalgar-class submarine rests in dry dock, its 85.4-meter hull a silent testament to a bygone era of underwater warfare. Constructed in Barrow-in-Furness during the late 1970s, these vessels, beginning with HMS Trafalgar in 1983, were Cold War warriors, designed to prowl unseen with a PWR1 nuclear reactor and a stealthy pump-jet, reaching 32 knots while submerged at 5,208 tons. Equipped with five torpedo tubes for Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk missiles, plus advanced Type 2076 sonar, they hunted Soviet subs under Arctic ice and struck targets in Libya in 2011, sustaining a crew of 130 for 90-day missions. In 2025, this submarine—possibly HMS Talent or Triumph—sits as one of the last of its class, awaiting its fate as the Astute-class rises to replace it.