It has been observed that Turkey in the last year has been placing special emphasis on the production of weapon systems and means in order to counter Greek domination in the submarine warfare in the Aegean and the SE Mediterranean, which is mainly due to our 4 ultra-modern submarines of the Papanikolis class 214, out of the total of 11 we have, which is a major obstacle to its plans to conduct a large-scale landing operation in order to occupy our islands.
Turkey's 'underwater' power is constantly increasing
Currently, the Turkish Navy has a total of 12 submarines in 3 different classes.
New submarines for the Turkish Navy
The Turks have decided that from this year onwards, one submarine will be commissioned every year and 6 Reis class submarines will be delivered to the Turkish Navy by 2027.
The original delivery schedule for the submarines was :
TCG Piri Reis – 2022
TCG Hizir Reis – 2023
TCG Murat Reis – 2024
TCG Aydin Reis – 2025
TCG Seydi Ali Reis – 2026
TCG Selman Reis – 2027
However, TCG PİRİREİS (S-330), the first submarine of the REİS class, also known as Type 214TN, encountered delays resulting in it entering Turkish Navy service this year.
On the other hand, the deliveries of the other 5 submarines of the same class will continue for years and according to the target all submarines will be delivered by 2028, instead of 2027 which was the design mentioned above.
Modernisation of old submarines and integration of combat management system
In parallel, Turkey has been working on a "Half-Life" modernization project for 4 PREVEZE class submarines, successfully completing acceptance activities of some critical systems under the responsibility of STM.
In addition, STM took responsibility for the integration of the HAVELSAN Advent-Müren combat management system platform, which will also be integrated into the Gür-class submarines.
Turkish torpedo "AKYA"
Turkey also recently added the National Heavy Class Torpedo Roketsan "AKYA" torpedo to its inventory. The "AKYA" torpedo can be used by both Reis class submarines and 12 old generation submarines in the inventory.
ATR-72/600 anti-submarine aircraft
It is also known that the Meltem-III project contract covers the procurement of a total of 6 ATR-72/600 aircraft and their modification to ASW and ASUW configuration for the Turkish Navy, while anti-submarine warfare tasks will be assigned to Aksungur UAVs.
STM-500 mini-submarine
Finally, recently at an International Defence Exhibition the Turks presented the STM-500 mini submarine vehicle that can be used by special forces and can carry up to 6 people, carrying out underwater penetration of cays, islets and islets in the Aegean Sea.
Turkish sea mine "Malaman"
In addition to the above, the Turks have built a new indigenous sea mine called "MALAMAN" which is based on the Mk84 bomb.
Airborne platforms such as the F-16 fighter aircraft, Akıncı and Aksungur UCAVs, which can carry MK-84 ammunition weighing about 2,000 pounds, will also be able to launch the MALAMAN mine.
The sea mine is deployed in the form of the Mk-84 Utility bomb and can be launched from a distance of 70 km to the desired point with precision guidance kits such as KGK, HGK and LGK.
Robotic underwater vehicle and the new "YAKAMOS-RT" sonar
Also the Turkish defense company ASELSAN has made a "underwater threat hunter" as it calls it , a new unmanned underwater autonomous robotic vehicle in the shape and size of a torpedo.
Finally they developed the YAKAMOS-RT underwater sonar system, specifically to provide anti-submarine warfare capability to smaller platforms such as patrol boats and unmanned maritime vehicles that cannot be equipped with a hull-mounted sonar system, which also operate in shallow water.
The new Mini Multipurpose Submarine DATUM
According to Turkish media, the "neighbors" launched the Mini Multipurpose Submarine Development Program (ÇAMD) on July 2, 2021 by DATUM Submarine Technologies and Applied Engineering, a subsidiary of Istanbul Technical University,
The main purpose of the project is to develop "a platform on which many systems such as fuel cells, sonar units, torpedoes and torpedo decoys can be tested on the mini submarine, which will have 4 crew members as crew.
The submarine has 4 payload compartments measuring 100cm x 50cm x 50cm. Systems with a weight of 400 kg and an electricity consumption of 5 kWh can be tested underwater.
In the future, SAT transport vehicle (SDV), underwater rescue vehicle (DSRV), unmanned underwater vehicle and tourist submarine can be developed from the test submarine.
The ÇAMD, which will be 12 meters long, has been deployed to be transported on the road by truck trailer.
The test took place in a coastal town in Eastern Thrace
Before the main 8-meter-long and 2-meter-diameter durable vessel was built, a small-scale durable vessel with a length of 2 meters and a diameter of 1.5 meters was built to test the production technique and a test dive was conducted off İğneada (a coastal township of Eastern Thrace in the Black Sea, near the border with Bulgaria) on July 11, 2023.
There was no damage to the vessel, which remained at 400 metres under 40 bar pressure for 45 minutes and production of the 8-metre long, durable vessel began.
Production of the main vessel was completed in October 2023.
ÇAMD is the first locally designed submarine to be approved by Türk Loydu. As of October, the Detailed Design Phase of ÇAMD was completed. Türk Loydu reviewed 51 Detailed Design Documents of ÇAMD and the Design Approval Process was completed.
Technical characteristics
The submarine includes main submersible, liner and tank regulation systems and the pump and compressed air circuits. There is an electrical system and control system developed specifically for the vehicle and type control systems associated with this system, as well as for sensor groups such as pressure systems, various gases, and fire.
Navigation of the mini submarine, which has depth, altimeter and radar systems, is provided by a special inertial navigation system integrated with GPS in the water and a Doppler speedometer underwater.
ÇAMD has two retractable masts, antennas for various communication and navigation systems and an electro-optical camera that can see 360 degrees. There are emergency rescue systems, rescue buoys and anchor fittings.
A water-cooled electric motor, which will be used in manned/unmanned submarine studies to be developed locally in Turkey under ÇAMD, was developed domestically and nationally by Femsan DC Motor Factory and certified by Türk Loydu.
Preliminary studies have been conducted to integrate the submarine sonar developed by ASELSAN, the Orka light torpedo developed by ROKETSAN and the hydrogen fuel cell developed by ASPİLSAN into the Multipurpose Mini Submarine.
General characteristics
General characteristics of the DATUM Multipurpose Mini Submarine:
Length: 12 meters
Diameter: 2 meters
Diving depth: 300 meters
Operating speed: 4 knots
Maximum Speed: 8 knots
Cruising time: 20 hours at 4 knots
Crew: 4
Main propulsion: Electric motor, seven-blade propeller, lead-acid battery
Classification: Türk Loydu
"Pact" of Turkish underwater assets
From the above, we can see a Turkish underwater assets' "pile-up", in an effort by the "neighbours" for naval domination over Greece in the Aegean and the SE Mediterranean, which is necessary for Turkey to dare to implement its existing plans for the occupation of our islands in the Archipelago.
The continuation and increase of our country's armament programs is required, in conjunction with constant vigilance of the Armed Forces, against the Turk who is feverishly preparing for a military confrontation with us.
