German Navy Warships Finally Ditch Floppy Disks After 30 Years

It may seem hard to believe, but floppy disks are still used for official purposes in some countries. The storage capacity of the device is 1.44 MB (by today’s standards). This is barely enough to hold a three-minute MP3 audio file.

The German Navy still uses floppy disk drives on its four F123 Brandenburg-class frigates. According to a German media report, it is now considering replacing them with a modern emulation-based solution as part of the phase-out of the obsolete storage device.

The frigates’ data acquisition (DAQ) systems rely heavily on floppy disk drives, which have been in service since the ships were commissioned in the mid-1990s.

In a similar development in recent times, Japan announced in January 2024 that it would abolish a long-standing policy requiring companies to provide additional data on floppy disks (or CD-ROMs).

Combat system overhaul

The F123 frigates use floppy disks for their onboard data acquisition systems, which are essential for controlling various ship functions, including power plants. These systems record essential operating parameters. The F123 frigates are specialized in anti-submarine warfare and air defense.

Despite the availability of modern alternatives, the German Navy continued to use these obsolete floppy disks because established systems were considered more reliable.

According to Geradeaus eyesInstead of overhauling the entire data acquisition system, the government plans to develop and integrate an on-board emulation system to replace floppy disks..

The German Federal Office for Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) recently signed a contract with Saab for the delivery and installation of new naval radars, fire control directors and combat management systems for the F123 frigates.

However, the data acquisition system that uses the floppy drives is a separate part of the upgrade process and will not be handled by Saab.

The replacement of the floppy disks is expected to begin on October 1 and end on July 31, 2025. The F123 frigates are expected to remain in service until 2028-2031, when the F126s are expected to become available, according to reports. ArsTechnica.

Digital transition initiatives

In 2019, the U.S. military replaced the 8-inch floppy disks in its intercontinental ballistic missile command, control and communications network with SSDs.

Surprisingly, Strategic Automated Command and Control System (SACCS) was an outdated technology that used floppy disks. It allowed command centers to warn forces on the ground of nuclear activity in the event of an emergency.

Currently, the US military is transmitting its messages via new technology rather than floppy disks. However, the details have not been released for understandable reasons.

In Japan, there were about 1,900 official government procedures requiring companies to submit additional data on floppy disks or CD-ROMs. However, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) is moving to abandon this outdated practice.

In early 2024, METI issued a “Ministerial Order to Amend Certain METI Ordinances to Promote Regulatory Reforms to Foster a Digital Society,” aimed at reviewing and updating rules that mandate the use of obsolete media such as floppy disks.

This initiative is part of a broader effort by the Digital Agency to review analogue regulations (digital principles) across various ministries.

According to TechRadarThe current law not only mandates the use of obsolete storage media, but also leaves ambiguity about the legality of cloud-based actions, such as creating and saving documents online.

To modernize the regulations, METI plans to eliminate any references to specific media types such as “floppy disk” or “CD-Rom” and replace them with more contemporary terms such as “electromagnetic recording media.”