The final delivery of “Section 50”, the bow section of which contains the submarine torpedo tubes, produced for the first time in Turkey with national means under the engineering and coordination of STM, was made at the Golcuk Shipyard Command. The last “Section 50” produced for Reis Class submarines will be integrated into TCG SELMANREIS. Another important delivery was completed in the Turkish Navy New Type Submarine Project launched by the Presidency of Defence Industries (SSB). While the first submarine of the project, PIRIREIS, started sea tests on December 6, STM delivered the new “Section 50”, the bow section of the submarine’s torpedo tubes, which a few countries in the world can only produce. The fourth and final delivery of “Section 50”, which was produced for the first time in Turkey with domestic means, under the engineering and coordination of STM, at Gurdesan Gemi Makinalar? Sanayii Ticaret A.S., was successfully completed. One “Section 50”, produced for Reis Class submarines, was delivered to Gölcük Shipyard Command by sea. The fourth and final Section 50 produced and delivered in Turkey will be integrated into TCG SELMANRE?S, the last submarine of the project. STM and Gürdesan delivered the first Section 50 to be integrated into TCG MURATREIS in September 2021, and the second and third deliveries to be integrated into TCG AYDINREIS and TCG SEYDIAL?REIS in July 2022.
Ozgur Guleryuz, General Manager of STM, stated that the localization of the submarine torpedo section is a historic achievement, and said: “As STM, we completed and delivered our first Section50 production last year, and the second and third productions in July this year. Although this was the first time such production was carried out at this level, all deliveries were made on time without disrupting the project thanks to the knowledge, experience, and outstanding efforts of STM engineers. We are also proud that we have succeeded in surpassing the targeted localization rate for the Reis Class Submarines, which will increase the deterrence of our Navy in the Blue Homeland. I congratulate all my teammates and stakeholders who contributed to this project, which is an important experience on the road to national submarine production.”
Prof. Dr. Ismail Demir, President of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey Defence Industries, said: “We continue our efforts to add strength to our country’s power in the Blue Homeland. With the participation of our STM engineers and our local industry, we have completed the last delivery of the head parts, which include torpedo tubes, which we have produced domestically for the Reis Class submarines. May this last delivery for the Reis Class, which will be the most modern submarine platform of our country, be beneficial to our Nation, our Navy, and the Blue Homeland. We will continue to take nationalization steps in critical systems.”
STM plays an important role in the production of Reis Class Submarines. Bringing its design competence and experience in submarine design to the Turkish Navy New Type Submarine Project, STM provides the entire coordination of the project within the scope of Section 50. STM’s expert teams are carrying out the construction plans, checking the assemblies, making them ready for delivery, and monitoring the delivery phases. In addition to Section 50, STM carries out design, engineering, and system integration activities in the Turkish Navy New Type Submarine Project. Contributing to the indigenization of the materials, devices/systems to be used in shipbuilding, STM is having submarine non-pressure tight hull blocks and various GRP units (Composite Submarine Superstructure) manufactured domestically to increase the domestic contribution to the project. Section 50, the most critical part of the Reis-class submarines, the Turkish Navy’s latest modern submarine platform, contains the main submarine weapons and the systems that enable the firing of guided missiles. Thanks to Section 50, Reis Class Submarines are armed with eight 533mm torpedo tubes. Within the scope of the project, six Reis Class Submarines are planned to be delivered. The torpedo tubes of the first two submarines were produced by the main contractor of the project, German ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS). The Section 50 section, which will be used on the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th submarines, was produced for the first time in Turkey by Gurdesan under the main subcontractorship of STM.
Within the scope of the requirements of the Turkish Naval Forces Command, six Reis Class submarines will be built at Golcuk Shipyard Command with maximum Turkish industrial participation in order to meet the criteria of the Submarine Concept of Operations. The intention in the Turkish Navy New Type Submarine Project is to commission six submarines with air-independent propulsion systems, capable of launching many types of torpedoes and missiles as well as laying mines, and equipped with armaments for engaging with underwater, surface and land targets, are planned to be put in the service from this year. Equipped with the Air Independent Propulsion System (AIP), the Reis Class submarines will have the capability to operate underwater for weeks without surfacing. The submarines, which have low-noise navigation capability, will be able to conduct operations in secrecy for long periods of time. The submarines will be 68 meters long, weigh over 2,000 tons, and have a capacity of 40 personnel. TCG P?R?RE?S, the first submarine built at Gölcük Shipyard within the scope of the project, was launched in March 2021. TCG P?R?RE?S started its navigation experiences in December 2022. In the project, the H?z?rreis Submarine Docking and Selmanreis Submarine First Welding Ceremony were held on May 23, 2022, with the participation of President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an. The names of the Reis Class Submarines that will serve in the Turkish Naval Forces Command are as follows: TCG PIRIREIS, TCG HIZIRREIS, TCG MURATREIS, TCG AYDINREIS, TCG SEYDIALIREIS and TCG SELMANREIS.
