Indonesia’s Merah Putih Frigate Integrates ASELSAN CENK 350-N Radar in Major Leap for Indo-Pacific Naval Power

(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) — In a transformative breakthrough for Indonesia’s naval modernisation ambitions, integration work has officially commenced on installing ASELSAN’s CENK 350-N Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) X-band air and surface surveillance radar aboard the country’s first Merah Putih-class frigate, marking a decisive leap in Southeast Asia’s evolving naval balance.

This landmark integration, captured in detailed shipyard photographs widely circulated among defence observers, underscores Indonesia’s accelerating embrace of advanced naval technologies at a time when maritime tensions in the region continue to escalate.

The installation of the CENK 350-N radar positions the Merah Putih as one of the most advanced surface combatants in Southeast Asia, capable of projecting maritime domain awareness far beyond Indonesia’s territorial seas and exclusive economic zones.

The CENK 350-N’s integration is not merely a technical milestone but a symbol of Indonesia’s growing confidence in diversifying defence partnerships, particularly with Türkiye’s rapidly advancing defence industry.

Indonesia’s Merah Putih-class frigates, central to the nation’s long-term Minimum Essential Force (MEF) roadmap, embody Jakarta’s strategic resolve to safeguard maritime sovereignty across one of the world’s busiest and most contested waterways.

Derived from the proven United Kingdom Babcock Arrowhead 140 design—already selected as the basis for the Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigate—the Merah Putih optimises a modular and scalable configuration to accommodate cutting-edge foreign and domestically integrated weapon and sensor systems.

The decision to select the Arrowhead 140 stemmed from its modularity, affordability, and adaptability, allowing Indonesia to integrate state-of-the-art Turkish and Western technologies without the structural and technical limitations of older naval architectures.

Construction of the first Indonesian frigate commenced in late 2024 at PT PAL’s Surabaya shipyard, marking a shift toward domestic shipbuilding self-reliance supported by international technology transfer agreements.

Projected to enter service by 2028, the first Merah Putih frigate will emerge as a crucial asset in Indonesia’s fleet expansion strategy, with the second vessel to follow shortly thereafter, enabling the Indonesian Navy to deploy a pair of formidable multi-role combatants into the Indo-Pacific theatre.

CENK 350-N Fixed-Face AESA Radar Establishes Merah Putih as a Southeast Asian Maritime Powerhouse

With a full-load displacement of approximately 6,626 tonnes and a length of 140 metres, the frigate class offers expansive space for advanced radars, vertical launch systems, command-and-control suites, and layered defensive weaponry.

Its beam of 19.75 metres and internal volume provide flexibility for future upgrades, ensuring longevity and relevance as regional naval technologies evolve.

A crew complement of around 100 personnel reflects an optimised balance between manpower and automation, allowing for efficient operations across Indonesia’s vast maritime expanse.

Powered by a Combined Diesel And Diesel (CODAD) propulsion system, the ship can reach speeds of up to 28 knots, enabling rapid deployment during crisis scenarios or joint regional security operations.

Indonesia’s variant incorporates a high-density weapons payload centred around the ROKETSAN MIDLAS vertical launch system capable of supporting up to 64 missile cells for ATMACA anti-ship missiles, HISAR-D air defence interceptors, and SIPER Block 1-D long-range air defence missiles.

This 64-cell configuration elevates the Merah Putih into the upper tier of ASEAN surface combatants, surpassing many existing regional frigate classes in terms of firepower and flexibility.

Complementing these systems are 57mm or 76mm naval guns, Gökdeniz close-in weapon systems, and lightweight torpedoes, forming a complete multi-domain combat suite.

For ASW operations, the frigate integrates hull-mounted sonar arrays including ASELSAN’s FERSAH system, enabling long-range detection of submarine threats in both littoral waters and deep ocean zones.

The helicopter hangar and flight deck support medium-lift ASW helicopters, extending the frigate’s reach for reconnaissance, anti-submarine warfare, and long-endurance maritime patrols.

At the centre of the frigate’s sensor ecosystem is the CENK 350-N, a fixed-face X-band AESA radar capable of delivering uninterrupted 360-degree azimuth coverage using four static arrays for total situational awareness.

The radar’s instrumented range of 250 kilometres enables high-fidelity detection of sea-skimming missiles, fast jets, small surface vessels, UAVs, and asymmetric maritime threats in saturated environments.

Built using advanced GaN semiconductor materials, the radar provides enhanced power efficiency, superior resistance to jamming, and excellent survivability in high-sea-state operations.

ASELSAN markets the CENK family as “optimized for medium-to-long-range high-altitude air and surface surveillance and target designation,” highlighting its precision tracking, multi-beam performance, and robust ECCM suite.

The radar draws from the technology lineage of the ÇAFRAD system destined for Türkiye’s TF-2000 destroyers, incorporating years of operational feedback into a compact frigate-ready configuration.

Its fixed-face nature eliminates blind zones, providing uninterrupted surveillance vital for detecting hypersonic threats, saturation missile attacks, and stealthy UAV incursions.

Arrowhead 140 Hybrid Architecture Signals Indonesia’s Pivot Toward Modular, Multinational Naval Procurement

The CENK 350-N also feeds data directly into missile guidance architectures, enabling mid-course updates for HISAR-D and SIPER Block 1-D interceptors deployed aboard the ship’s MIDLAS VLS system.

The CENK 200-N (MAR-D) radar, offering a 100-kilometre range, augments the surveillance picture by handling helicopter control, low-altitude search, and small-target tracking.

ASELSAN’s CENK 400-N S-band AESA radar, potentially available for integration in future upgrades, would allow detection ranges extending to 400 kilometres, comparable to destroyer-class early-warning systems.

Together, these systems create a multi-frequency, multi-domain layered sensor architecture that gives the Merah Putih situational awareness far exceeding that of most regional frigates.

HAVELSAN’s ADVENT Combat Management System (CMS) forms the backbone of the frigate’s operational architecture by providing seamless fusion of radar, sonar, electronic warfare, weapon, and communication data.

ADVENT integrates network-centric warfare principles, allowing the frigate to operate as a node in Indonesia’s growing digital naval grid, sharing data with submarines, UAVs, and other surface vessels.

The Indonesian Navy’s decision to install ADVENT across more than 40 vessels signifies a fundamental shift toward modernised command-and-control doctrine, incorporating real-time decision support and collaborative targeting.

Imagery shared by defence watchers on X (formerly Twitter) shows the radar arrays being prepared for installation atop a structurally reinforced mast designed to accommodate the power and cooling requirements of the system.

The radar, along with IFF modules, secure tactical data links, and the AKREP-200 fire control system, was ordered under a 2025 contract with an estimated delivery and installation window of approximately 36 months.

Integration phases include structural installation, cable routing, software synchronisation, electromagnetic testing, and sea trials under simulated combat conditions.

Indonesia’s geography—comprising more than 17,000 islands—demands naval platforms with sophisticated detection capability to counter threats ranging from piracy and smuggling to military incursions and grey-zone activities.

The CENK 350-N’s ECCM capabilities are particularly crucial in contested environments such as the South China Sea, where electronic warfare and radar interference attempts are increasingly common.

With the ability to detect low-RCS targets, the radar provides a level of air and surface awareness previously unavailable to Indonesian naval platforms.

ADVENT CMS and Layered Sensor Suite Forge Indonesia’s Most Network-Centric Frigate to Date

Turkey’s defence exports to Indonesia have exceeded USD 2 billion (approximately RM 9.5 billion), with UAVs, submarines, weapon systems, sensors, and command-and-control technologies forming the foundation of this expanding partnership.

PT PAL benefits from significant technology transfer, enabling domestic shipbuilders to gain expertise in AESA radar integration, advanced combat system installation, and future indigenous platform digitalisation.

One defence expert summarised Indonesia’s evolving procurement model by stating, “The Merah Putih class embodies Indonesia’s pivot toward hybrid sourcing, blending British hulls with Turkish avionics to create a cost-effective, high-capability platform.”

At IDEF 2025 in Istanbul, ASELSAN officials emphasised the radar’s export significance by stating, “The CENK 350-N represents a new era in naval sensing, offering frigates destroyer-level awareness in a compact form.”

Indonesia’s Navy further confirmed the strategic value of this integration with the statement, “By incorporating advanced Turkish technologies, we are enhancing our blue-water capabilities while building local industrial capacity.”

Regional naval planners in Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines are closely examining Indonesia’s Merah Putih integration roadmap as a cost-efficient path toward advanced maritime modernisation.

With a 64-cell VLS, cutting-edge AESA radar suite, and ADVENT CMS integration, the Merah Putih surpasses the combat capabilities of many frigates and even approaches the configuration of some destroyer-class warships.

The CENK 350-N’s fixed-face radar arrays offer persistent all-aspect awareness that outperforms rotating radars such as Singapore’s Thales Herakles, especially in saturation-threat or high-EW environments.

During joint exercises such as Garuda Shield, the Merah Putih is expected to function as a high-fidelity sensor and targeting node capable of feeding precision tracking data to coalition units.

ASELSAN’s radar family continues to expand, with future export possibilities including the CENK 300-N for corvettes and the CENK 100-N for UAV and fast-attack craft defence, offering Indonesia long-term fleet standardisation options.

Turkey–Indonesia Defence Cooperation Redefines the Indo-Pacific Geostrategic Balance

For Indonesia, the Merah Putih and its CENK-enhanced combat architecture represent a decisive step toward a fully networked navy capable of synchronising with BrahMos-capable frigates, Scorpene submarines, and high-altitude UAV fleets.

The integration of the CENK 350-N radar is therefore both an operational upgrade and a strategic affirmation of Indonesia’s maritime modernisation path amid intensifying Indo-Pacific competition.

As sea trials approach, global interest surrounds this flagship collaboration between Indonesia and Türkiye, which stands poised to reshape naval expectations for medium-sized maritime powers across Asia.

The Merah Putih-class frigates, once operational, will symbolise Indonesia’s maritime resilience, technological ambition, and strategic autonomy in an era defined by shifting great-power dynamics and accelerating military modernisation across the region.

With steady progress on radar installation and system integration, the Merah Putih equipped with the CENK 350-N is on track to become one of Southeast Asia’s most formidable naval platforms, altering regional naval calculus for decades to come.

The deepening Türkiye–Indonesia defence partnership signifies a broader Indo-Pacific realignment in which middle powers increasingly seek high-end military capabilities outside traditional Western supply chains to hedge against geopolitical uncertainty.

The integration of Turkish radar and combat systems also represents a strategic counterweight to China’s expanding naval influence in regional waters, providing Indonesia with enhanced surveillance reach across potential flashpoints such as the Natuna Sea and the wider South China Sea.

By adopting advanced AESA technologies, Indonesia strengthens its capacity to operate within a multi-domain battlespace where electronic warfare, cyber intrusion, and long-range precision weapons are becoming defining features of modern naval conflict.

The Merah Putih’s CENK 350-N system further enables Indonesia to participate in cooperative maritime security frameworks, allowing the frigate to share target data and situational intelligence with allied platforms during joint exercises or contingency operations.

Turkey’s growing footprint in the Indonesian defence ecosystem also accelerates technology transfer and industrial upskilling, laying the foundation for future ASEAN-led naval projects that may incorporate indigenous radar production, VLS manufacturing, or composite-hull fabrication.

Regionally, the enhanced capabilities of the Merah Putih-class frigates compel neighbouring navies to recalibrate their modernisation trajectories, triggering an upward shift in Southeast Asia’s maritime force-projection baseline.

Strategically, the Indonesia–Türkiye partnership reflects a new multipolar defence landscape in which agile, technologically ambitious states collaborate to achieve deterrence, autonomy, and operational dominance in contested maritime zones.— DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA