Correction: A previous version of this story misidentified the number of shipyards expected to build three new frigates for Turkey. The three businesses are partners in the consortium TAIS.
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s top defense procurement agency has commissioned several local shipyards and a government-controlled defense engineering firm to build three more I-class frigates as part of the MILGEM program.
Ismail Demir, who leads the Presidency of Defence Industries, said Tuesday that the government chose local shipyards Anadolu, Sedef and Sefine — partners of the consortium TAIS — as well as engineering company STM for the job. A total of 200 companies will participate in the ships’ production.
The yards are to build the three vessels simultaneously and deliver them to the Turkish Navy within 36 months.
The first ship under the MILGEM program, the TCG Anadolu, is still under production. Demir said 80% of the new frigates will come from domestic material content, compared to 75% in TCG Anadolu.
Under the MILGEM effort, Ada-class corvettes TCG Heybeliada entered service in 2011; TCG Buyukada in 2013; TCG Burgazada in 2018; and TCG Kinaliada in 2019. The fifth ship, the I-class frigate TCG Istanbul, has a delivery date of 2023.
The I-class frigates will perform reconnaissance and surveillance; target tracking and identification; base and port defense; anti-submarine, anti-aircraft and surface warfare; amphibious operations; and patrol missions.
Demir said some of features of the new frigates include the close-in weapon system Gokdeniz, the 3D surveillance radar CENK, the fire control radar Akrep, and the missile systems Midlas and Hisar-D.
Some other subsystems include:
- The 76mm TAKS firing control system.
- The Kulac echo sounder system.
- Two ANS-510 gyro systems.
- The WECDIS cruise control and monitoring system.
- The Link 11 data terminal set.
- 76mm gun integration.
- The 12.7mm STAMP weapon.
- Advanced Harpoon Weapon Control System integration for the Harpoon Block II surface-to-surface missile.
Burak Ege Bekdil was the Turkey correspondent for Defense News.
