Turkey launched the first Babur-class MILGEM corvette for Pakistan on August 15. at Istanbul Shipyard in the presence of Pakistani President Alvi and Turkish President Erdogan. Mrs Samina Alvi, the First Lady launched the warship with a prayer. Both Presidents also jointly performed steel cutting of Akhisar, the offshore patrol vessel for Turkish Navy. The Babur-class corvette is a class of four heavy corvettes under construction for the Pakistan Navy. This class is designeted from Turkish MILGEM project. The corvette class is heavier and larger than the Turkish Ada-class corvette, also equipped with vertical launching system (VLS).
In July 2018, a contract was signed between Military Factory and Shipyard Management Corporation (ASFAT) of Turkey and the Pakistani National Defense Ministry Ammunition Production and Karachi Shipyard for the construction of four Milgem class vessels based on Turkish Ada-class design. The keel laying for this first corvette took place on 4 June 2020 at Istanbul Naval Shipyard. It is expected to be delivered to Pakistan Navy in 2023. The remaining ships will follow her in 6-month intervals. The last ship will be handed over in 2025.
On July 5, 2018, Pakistani military’s ISPR announced that a Turkish firm had won the tender to build four MILGEM corvettes for the Pakistan Navy. Pakistan Navy had inked a deal in July 2018 to procure four MILGEM-class ships from Turkey’s state-run defence firm ASFAT. According to the plan, two corvettes will be built in Turkey and the next two will be built in Pakistan which also involves technology transfer. The MILGEM-class Corvettes is equipped with surface to surface, surface to air missiles, anti submarine weapons and Command & Control system.
MILGEM project is a national warship program of the Republic of Turkey. Managed by the Turkish Navy, the project aims at developing multipurpose corvettes and frigates that can be deployed in a range of missions, including reconnaissance, surveillance, early warning, anti-submarine warfare, surface-to-surface and surface-to-air warfare, and amphibious operations. The name of the project emerged from the phrase “National Ship” in Turkish – Milli Gemi. The Ada class is a class of corvettes, a part of the MILGEM project, developed primarily for the Turkish Navy.
