At IDEF 2025, Naval News interviewed with Ahmet Berat İlhan, Subject Matter Expert in C2 and Defence Technologies at HAVELSAN, to discuss the company’s 4th Generation Submarine Combat Management System solution.
Designed for MİLDEN—Turkiye’s first national submarine currently under construction—this advanced system represents a futuristic approach to underwater warfare capabilities. In this exclusive interview, İlhan shares insights into the system’s architecture, operational features, and how it aligns with the multi-domain operations.
According to Mr. Ilhan, Havelsan’s vision for the Command and Control system of the National Submarine (MİLDEN) is built upon two foundational concepts: “Submarine Combat Information Center (CIC) Orchestration” and “4th Generation Submarine Command and Control.”
The first concept focuses on the physical configuration of the Submarine CIC, adopting a human-centered design that minimizes crew cognitive load while enhancing situational awareness and coordination. The layout emphasizes efficient human-system and human-to-human interaction through the integration of advanced operator consoles, large display systems, and supporting hardware within a dedicated CIC environment.
Mr. Ilhan mentioned that the second concept encompasses the capabilities of Operational Intelligence and Operational Autonomy, applying a system-of-systems methodology that treats the entire submarine platform as a unified combat system. Together, these two integrated approaches are designed to prepare submarines for the demands of Multi-Domain Operations (MDO).
About 4th-Gen Submarine CIC Concept
Given the average lifespan of a submarine of 40-50 years from design to decommissioning, it is expected that the design of the submarine will meet personnel, operational, and logistics requirements for the following 50 years. Thus, while deciding on the technology and design to be used, a vision that is forward-thinking but based on reality is required.
Therefore, the concept design was created from a “Realistic-Futuristic” perspective, and “Designing the Future” was chosen as the fundamental method. This is the foundation on which the “Submarine CIC Concept Design” is built.
Personnel-oriented approach
The Submarine CIC Concept has been designed in accordance with human perception/comprehension ability and expectations, in order to reduce personnel errors and increase performance by foreseeing business processes. It will incorporate a variety of technological features, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, big data, decision support, the internet of things, autonomous systems, robotics systems, augmented and virtual reality, touch, gesture control, and voice activation.
The design creates a separate and isolated structure so that activities in other areas of the submarine did not disrupt the concentration of the crew members at the center.
Circular layout
The layout of the systems has been considered carefully in the concept design so that the personnel can more easily perceive what is going on around them, the Submarine Commander’s command over the entire CIC is facilitated, and the personnel’s communication with each other is maximized.
Therefore, the CIC was created in a circular layout, so that the Commander and the personnel may easily make eye contact with this setup.
Three large multi-functional screens will be utilized to compile the relevant data and display it alone or in combination. These large screens have wide viewing angles and can be viewed by a large number of people at the same time.
A horizontal console that is integrated with the Command Console is placed at the center of the CIC, where the Recognized Maritime Picture (RMP) is presented and functions such as planning and briefing can be carried out in the vicinity of the TDR display. A further ergonomic feature of the horizontal console is the ability to show WECDIS layers, which allows both the Commander and the necessary SHM personnel to operate it together.
In addition, the data input tools on consoles, such as the joystick, the roll ball, and the touch/push button buttons, are built in an ergonomic and user-friendly manner to facilitate data entry.
According to Havelsan, this design will boost performance by decreasing personnel errors and strengthening the situational awareness of the CIC team.
