Naval Group delivers the fourth Barracuda-class nuclear attack submarine (SSN)

On 24 June 2026, Naval Group delivered the De Grasse, fourth in a series of six nuclear-powered attack submarines (SSNs) built in Cherbourg for the French Navy under the Barracuda program managed by the French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA).

The delivery of the SSN De Grasse comes exactly four months after the submarine’s first sea trials. Since being rolled out of its construction hall in May 2025, the SSN De Grasse has successively completed its dockside trials, the commissioning of its nuclear boiler room in December 2025, and a four-month sea trials campaign that began on February 24, 2026.

This delivery marks an important milestone in the Barracuda program for which the first three SSNs have already entered active service (Suffren in June 2022, Duguay-Trouin in April 2024, and Tourville in July 2025). The final two submarines of the program (Rubis and Casabianca) are currently under construction at various stages of completion, with deliveries scheduled through the end of the decade.