This is the class of submarine which Canada procured to replace the ageing Oberon class. These were the Royal Navy Upholder class which have been redesignated Victoria Class. 

It was decided to continue a common Canadian Naval tradition of naming vessels after Canadian communities to establish a tangible and enduring link between the Navy and and Canadians.

With four submarines, however, it was not possible to represent every area of Canada, as a result the criteria for for the name selection process was further refined to consider communities that have an association with the Atlantic/Pacific coasts or a major Canadian waterway that were representative of the various regions of Canada. Accordingly the theme of Canadian port cities was selected. This paves the way for the Navy to foster strong ties with these communities and all Canadians in the surrounding regions.

The order of commissioning, submarine name and pendant number are as follows:
 

HMCS Victoria		SSK 876
HMCS Windsor		SSK 877
HMCS Cornerbrook		SSK 878
HMCS Chicoutimi		SSK 879

The first boat is joined the Canadian fleet in December of 2000 with a subsequent boat to follow every six months.

Crew training continues in the U.K. and and is progressing well.

Following the completion of the Oberon program in 1967 no further submarines with diesel-electric propulsion were contemplated by the Royal Navy. However, with the decision to build Trident submarines it became clear that there would be a gap of about eight years in the SSN building program because Vickers (Barrow) was the only remaining shipyard with sufficient nuclear construction expertise, and building capacity was limited.  Moreover, the Oberons, by this time nearing the end of their service lives, had shown their value in routine patrol operations and had proved to be inherently quieter than their nuclear counterparts. The Royal Navy therefore opted for a new diesel-electric design, employing as much of the technology developed for the SSN program as it was possible to incorporate. 

Up to 18 were planned with later batches having an increased hull size and new sonars. However in the 1993 defence cuts lead to the class being decommissioned before they had even been in full service for a year. To date the submarines remain mothballed in the U.K 

Design:

The hull-form, which has an exceptionally high beam to length ratio, is closely modelled on that of the British nuclear boats. Single-hull construction has been adopted, and the cylindrical pressure hull is of NQ 1 (HY80 equivalent) steel for a maximum diving depth of at least 650 ft (200m); the fin will be largely constructed of GRP. The large diameter of the pressure hull allows for a spacious two-deck layout. The control room, communications office and ESM office are grouped together beneath  the fin, with the weapons stowage forward. The lower deck houses the accommodation and messing spaces, and there are two banks of Chloride lead-acid batteries beneath, each containing 240 cells. 

The propulsion and auxiliary machinery is located in a single-deck compartment abaft the accommodation decks. In the forward part of the machinery space are the two Paxman 16 cylinder diesel generators,  which are mounted on a raft above the fuel tanks. The generator room is separated from the motor room by a transverse acoustic bulkhead.  The GEC main motor comprises two motors in a common frame with two armatures on a common shaft. This arrangement makes possible series or parallel combinations, giving a continuous speed range between four and 20 knots. There is a separate motor generator for speeds below four knots. The Upholders have exceptionally high submerged speed, and their large battery capacity gives them an underwater  endurance 45 per cent greater than  that of the Oberon. They are also capable of sustaining 19 knots while snorkelling. Advanced automation, which include autopilot, has made it possible reduce the complement to only 44 officers and men. 

Armament:

The six bow the standard 21" (533mm) diameter and are disposed in banks (two in the upper and four in  the lower bank) in the upper  section of the bow. Positive discharge is used to enable the torpedoes to be fired from any  depth. Additional stowage with hydraulic handling is provided for a further 12 weapons. Initially Mk 24 Tigerfish torpedo was to be carried, then being superseded by the heavyweight Marconi Spearfish. They can also carry sub-harpoon anti ship missiles and mines. 

Some modifications will be required on torpedo tubes, sensors and the fire control suite in order to use Mk 48 torpedoes as well as other minor modifications to meet Canadian requirements.