The success of Turkey’s defense industry in unmanned systems is no secret. After exporting combat-proven TB -2 Bayraktar unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to more than 30 countries, new and more powerful drones have also been exported. In addition, Turkish companies are currently working on six projects for unmanned surface vessels (USV), some of which are already operational. The companies are currently developing different variants of the vessels to cover all types of naval operations.
Turkish defense companies now appear to be actively working on unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV). The companies seemed to cover the underwater domain with unmanned systems during IDEF 2023 defence fair which was held in Istanbul in late July. STM, the primary contractor of the Turkish Navy’s backbone projects including MILGEM corvettes and I-class frigates, announced its UUV project, while the leading defence company Aselsan showcased a brand-new UUV named “Deringöz (means DeepEye) for the first time.
You can see our video coverage in Aselsan booth at IDEF 2023.
Aselsan showcased Deringöz UUV during the TEKNOFEST defence show in Ankara last week. Aselsan Deringöz is an underwater drone that is currently under development. According to information gathered from the company brochure, it will be an underwater surveillance drone.
Deringöz reaches a maximum depth of 600 meters, where it can operate for 5 hours on a single battery. With two additional batteries, Deringöz has an endurance of 15 hours at sea. The UUV has a maximum speed of 5.5 knots underwater and a surveillance speed of 3 knots. Deringöz will be equipped with side-scan sonar and an obstacle-avoidance system.
Deringöz is remotely controlled via an on-board wireless communications system. The payload can be increased depending on mission requirements. However, the company did not specify the maximum payload capacity.
Another Turkish company Sonitus reportedly unveiled 2 underwater gliders and a UUV at IDEF 2023.
STM’s UUV prototype to be ready in early 2024
Mr. Özgür Güleryüz, the CEO of STM, spoke to Turkish media about the company’s ongoing naval project during the TEKNOFEST event, a technological demonstration fair that was held in Ankara from August 20 to September 03, 2023.
“In the first phase, our goal is to develop an unmanned, autonomous underwater vehicle that we can use for mine detection and neutralization. Our prototype will be ready by early 2024 at the latest.”
Ozgur Guleryuz, CEO of STM
Guleryuz also stated that their primary goal is to prove that they can manufacture such an asset by national means, “Our aim with this platform is to demonstrate feasibility. We are trying to build different infrastructures where we can change the job descriptions a lot. In the first stage, we aim to use it for mine detection and clearance.” Guleryuz added.
During IDEF 2023, Guleryuz told Turkish media that the company will equip the STM500 light submarine with an SDV for naval commands and plans to manufacture this vecihle as a semi-autonomous device.
“Current competencies of STM; When we combine our competencies in autonomous systems, surface and underwater platform design, and sensors, we can fully merge this with STM ‘s own resources and technologies. We hope to launch our underwater vehicle capable of performing a fully autonomous mission in 2024,” he said.
Though the company officials didn’t share information about the main specifications of the UUV, it’s not difficult to guess that the size of the vessel will be similar to the SDV of the STM500. Moreover, the CEO’s statements clearly show that the new UUV will show up at the beginning of the next year.
You can watch our coverage on the STM’s booth at IDEF 2023:
