TKMS delivers final Dolphin II-class submarine to Israeli Navy

Dolphin II-class submarine INS Drakon heading from Germany to Israel on 1 September 2026 after TKMS finished construction. (Michael Nitz, Naval Press Service)

TKMS and the Israeli Navy held a ceremony on 1 September 2026 to send the final Dolphin II-class diesel electric submarine (SSK), from Kiel where it was built, to Israel.

TKMS said it marks the completion of the Dolphin II-class, which incorporates a hybrid propulsion system based on air independent propulsion (AIP) fuel cells, enabling the boats to operate submerged for several weeks. The company added that INS Drakon, and the Dolphin-class was one of the most complex submarine classes it had ever built.

Purchased by Israel's Ministry of Defense for the Navy, the Israeli Defense Forces said in a release on 1 September that they and German officials “are holding extensive discussions on future joint resilience projects, which will expand the cooperation to new areas of joint development and production.”

Production of the successor Dakar-class, also of three submarines, began in November 2024. First delivery is expected in the early 2030s. TKMS has also built the Israeli Navy's Sa'ar 6-class corvettes.

For more, please see: Third Dolphin II SSK for Israeli Navy starts sea trials