OVERVIEW: The A.184 is an Italian heavyweight, wire-guided torpedo developed for submarine launch, designed to engage both surface ships and submarines. It features passive/active acoustic homing with mid-course wire guidance and was later succeeded by the Black Shark torpedo.

DETAILS: The A.184 was developed by Whitehead Alenia Sistemi Subacquei (WASS) in the 1970s and entered service in the early 1980s with the Italian Navy. It was Italy’s first fully domestically produced heavyweight torpedo and featured dual-mode acoustic homing, wire-guidance for mid-course correction, and anti-submarine as well as anti-surface capabilities. Propelled by an electric motor and silver-zinc batteries, it had a quiet acoustic signature suitable for deep and shallow water operations. It was eventually replaced by the more advanced “Black Shark,” a separate modern system with higher performance and fiber-optic wire guidance.

TYPE: Heavyweight wire-guided acoustic torpedo

FUNCTION: The A.184 uses active or passive acoustic sensors to track enemy submarines or surface ships and receives mid-course guidance updates via wire from the launching submarine. Once within terminal range, it switches to onboard homing to strike the target with a high-explosive warhead.

NOTE:
IOC: 1980 (A.184), 2004 (Black Shark)
Operators: Italy, Pakistan
Platforms: Sauro-class submarines (Italy), Agosta 90B-class submarines (Pakistan, modified)
Conflict used in: No confirmed combat use

SOURCE:
Jane’s Underwater Warfare Systems ; Naval Institute Guide to World Naval Weapon Systems ; Whitehead Sistemi Subacquei Product Brochure ; Federation of American Scientists (FAS): https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/weaps/index.html ; SIPRI Arms Transfers Database: https://armstrade.sipri.org