"Current developments in the heavyweight (533 mm in diameter) torpedo market are very much driven by the demands of the submarine community. Closely integrated with the sensor, tactical, fire-control and weapon discharge systems of the host submarine, the modern heavyweight torpedo serves as an underwater guided weapon for use against both submarine and surface targets.

The radically altered post-Cold War anti-submarine warfare environment is changing the focus for torpedo development. The one time emphasis on detecting and prosecuting fast, deep-diving nuclear-powered boats has diminished markedly. The threat today comes from quiet conventional submarines operating in the shallow - and acoustically poor-waters of the littoral This sea change is driving attendant improvements in torpedo technology, with increasingly quiet targets and sophisticated acoustic countermeasures and the shift in emphasis from deep to shallow water operations driving many upgrade efforts."