(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) — Turkish defense company ROKETSAN is expected to export more than 500 of its “ATMACA” anti-ship missiles to customers worldwide, providing stiff competition to long-standing anti-ship missiles in the market such as Harpoon and Exocet.
According to Turkish defense media, the export of over 500 “ATMACA” anti-ship missiles includes commitments from Indonesia and Malaysia.
Malaysia will be the second Southeast Asian country after Indonesia to choose the “ATMACA” anti-ship missile through the procurement of three Littoral Mission Ships (LMS) Batch 2, which will be built by the Turkish company Savunma Teknolojieri Muhendislik (STM).
Construction of the LMS Batch 2 ships will commence this year, with STM aiming to deliver all three warships to the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) within 3.5 years.
The TLDM’s LMS Batch 2 ships will be based on the design of the ADA-class corvettes, which have demonstrated reliability and effectiveness in international waters.
The Malaysian Ministry of Defense signed a Letter of Acceptance (LOA) with the Turkish President of the Secretariat of Defence Industries (SSB) for the acquisition of the Littoral Mission Ships (LMS) Batch 2 for the Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) on June 10.
The LOA was signed by Defense Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Khaled Nordin, who is on a five-day working visit to Turkey, and SSB President Prof Dr. Haluk Gorgun.
In early January, Indonesia emerged as the first export customer of the “ATMACA” missile, awarding a contract to its local company, PT Republik Defensindo, to procure 45 of the missiles developed by ROKETSAN.
Reports from Indonesian media indicate that the “ATMACA” anti-ship missiles will equip the Fatahillah-class corvettes, Parhim-class corvettes, and KCR FPB 57.
Developed by ROKETSAN, the “ATMACA” missile can strike targets up to 250 km away.
The missile, which ranges in length from 4.3 meters to 5.2 meters and weighs 750 kg, outperforms the U.S.-made “Harpoon Block II” anti-ship missile, which has a range of only 130 km.
The “Exocet Block III” anti-ship missile has a range of 200 km.
The Turkish anti-ship missile system utilizes Inertial Navigation System (INS) and Global Positioning System (GPS) guidance.
According to ROKETSAN, the “ATMACA” missile can operate autonomously, has a low radar cross-section (RCS), can function in all weather conditions, and can counter various defense systems.
It also boasts 3D mission planning, target updates, and mission abort capabilities via datalink.
The “ATMACA” missile has been under development by ROKETSAN for the past 10 years but was only publicly unveiled in 2019.
In 2023, Turkey announced plans to replace the U.S.-made “Harpoon” anti-ship missiles used by 11 of its warships with the domestically developed “ATMACA” missiles from ROKETSAN.
This move is part of Turkey’s strategy to achieve self-sufficiency in defense systems and components.
The domestically produced “ATMACA” missile will replace over 350 aging U.S.-made “Harpoon” anti-ship missiles, with the integration expected to be completed by 2027.
Turkey anticipates saving approximately $500 million (RM2.25 billion) by replacing the “Harpoon” missiles with the “ATMACA” missiles. The cost of the “ATMACA” missile is said to be half that of the “Harpoon” missile. — DSA