Spanish sub run aground again despite changes

An attempt to deploy a new submarine for Spain’s navy has run aground again, after it emerged it cannot fit in its dock.

The S-80 boat was redesigned at great expense after an earlier mistake meant it had problems floating, and it was lengthened to correct the issue.

Spanish newspaper El País now reports that after the changes, the docks at Cartagena can no longer fit the vessel. The cost for each has almost doubled, the newspaper said.

It estimated that the cost of each S-80 “Plus” submarine would now be close to €1 billionn (£900m). The original problem with the submarine dates back to 2013, when it was discovered that it was about 100 tons heavier than it needed to be. That caused a problem for its buoyancy – so it could submerge, but might not come back up again.