Turkey Replaces Foreign-Made Weapons With Locally-Manufactured Armaments
The contract witnessed the replacement of foreign-manufactured weapons previously utilized by the Turkish defense forces with domestically-produced armaments, including the anti-ship guided missile "ATMACA," the torpedo "AKYA," and the air defense system "SAPAN," all developed by Turkish defense companies.
(DEFENCE SECURITY ASIA) — The Turkish government has signed contracts to replace foreign-made weapons system used by its armed forces with those manufactured by its local defence companies.
Among the contracts signed with local companies are agreements with ROKETSAN and various other companies within the country to facilitate the production of the “AKYA” torpedo, the anti-ship missile “ATMACA” and the air defense system “SAPAN.”
All these weapons have been developed by ROKETSAN, according to the Turkish Ministry of Defense.
“With technological infrastructure, manufacturing capacity, and engineering capabilities, Turkey has become a manufacturing hub for critical technologies.”
“The significance of these projects in the defense industry is better understood when facing threats and dangers arising from all developments in our region and the world,” said Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler during the contract signing ceremony in Ankara.
The “ATMACA” anti-ship missile is a long-range missile developed by ROKETSAN, aimed at gradually replacing the “Harpoon” anti-ship guided missile developed by the U.S. company Boeing.
The Turkish Navy began developing the “ATMACA” missile in 2009, and the first naval vessel to launch it was the TCG Kinaliada in November 2019.
After undergoing various tests in all scenario, the anti-ship missile was recognized as ready for mass production.
The “ATMACA” missile underwent its final test in June 2021 and achieved Initial Operational Capability (IOC).
STM, one of the shipbuilding companies for the Turkish Navy, has stated that it has signed an agreement with ROKETSAN to equip 11 platforms currently under construction with the anti-ship guided missiles.
The heavy torpedo “AKYA” has successfully conducted firing tests from Preveze-class submarines, and the integration process is reportedly progressing smoothly.
The “AKYA” torpedo has also undergone successful firing tests on Perveze-class submarines.
The integration of the torpedo system into the Turkish Navy’s “Preveze” submarine has been successfully completed, with plans to equip it on Gur-class submarines in the future.
The “AKYA” torpedo is expected to replace the DM2A4 (SeaHake Mod 4) torpedo developed by Atlas Elektronik and the MK48 torpedo developed by Lockheed Martin.
Designed and built by ROKETSAN, the “AKYA” torpedo is employed for targeting other submarines and surface vessels.
It can operate autonomously or be guided using a fiber-optic control system as well as equipped with an active/passive sonar homing head.
Meanwhile, the air defense system “SAPAN” has been developed to replace the Evolved Seasparrow missile developed by RTX, formerly known as Raytheon Technologies.
Adapted from the HISAR air defense system, “SAPAN” entered service with the Turkish Navy in the Mediterranean when installed on the frigate TCG Istanbul. — DSA
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