Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri has begun construction of a new class of diesel-electric submarines for the Italian Navy.
Two submarines will initially be built under the U212NFS class, though the navy may exercise options for two additional boats.
Deliveries of the first two U212NFS submarines are scheduled for 2027 and 2029. These will replace the four aging Nazario Sauro-class boats that entered service from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s.
