The Dolphin class (Hebrew: הצוללות מסדרת דולפין) is a diesel-electric submarine developed in Israel[6] and constructed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in Kiel, Germany, for the Israeli Navy's Shayetet 7 flotilla.

The Dolphin 2 class submarines are the largest to have been built in Germany since World War II and the most expensive single vehicles in the Israel Defense Forces.

Funding for the first two boats (Dolphin and Leviathan) was fully subsidized by the German government to restart the construction program and the third (Tekumah) received a 50% subsidy.

[28] The two new boats are an upgraded version displacing 28% heavier than the older Dolphins, featuring an air-independent propulsion system, similar to the one used on German Type 212 submarines.

[42] In October 2017, Israel and Germany confirmed that they finalised a memorandum of understanding covering the Israeli Navy's purchase of three more Dolphin-class submarines to be delivered starting in 2027.

Israel has also procured the more advanced DM2A4 torpedo, successor to their DM2A3s, which are electrically propelled, equipped with fiber optic communications and has countermeasure resistant signals processing and mission logic.

[9][48][49] Jane's Defence Weekly reported that the Dolphin-class submarines are believed to be nuclear armed, offering Israel a sea-based, second strike capability.

[17][18] In adherence to Missile Technology Control Regime rules[46] the US Clinton administration rejected an Israeli request in 2000 to purchase Tomahawk long range SLCMs.

The U.S. Navy has deployed nuclear armed and conventional Tomahawk missiles for its submarine fleet which are launched from standard heavy 533 mm torpedo tubes.

The ship and internal features are constructed of nonmagnetic materials, significantly reducing the chances of it being detected by magnetometers or setting off magnetic naval mines.

[56] In 2009 the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, quoting an Israeli defence official, reported that the very small Eilat naval station is unsuited strategically to base the Dolphin-class boats, specifically noting the tight entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba at the Straits of Tiran as one held by potential adversaries including Saudi Arabia on the east and the demilitarized Egyptian Sinai to the west.

According to The London Sunday Times, the Israeli Navy decided in May 2010 to keep at least one submarine equipped with nuclear-tipped SLCM there permanently as a deterrent in response to rumored ballistic missiles moved from Syria to Lebanon.

[58] The Egypt–Israel peace treaty allows for the free passage of Israeli vessels through the Suez Canal, and recognizes the Strait of Tiran and the Gulf of Aqaba as international waterways.

[61] Israel National News and The Jerusalem Post both had articles on Sunday, July 14, 2013, which quoted that day's London Sunday Times saying that the July 5 Israeli missile strike against the Syrian port of Latakia, previously reported by CNN as an Israel Air Force strike, was made in coordination with the United States, and long range missiles were launched from a Dolphin-class submarine.

[65] Although unconfirmed by either the German or Israeli government, there was speculation that the Drakon would be longer than previous boats of its class and might have new weapon capabilities, including a vertical launch system (VLS).

TKMS went on to describe the Dakar as “a completely new design, which is to be specifically engineered to fulfill the operational requirements of the Israeli Navy.” [67] The boat was reported to have been taken out of the water but re-launched again in August 2023.