The first corvette of the Milgem project destined for Pakistan was launched at Istanbul Naval Shipyards on 15 August. In the presence of the Presidents of Pakistan, Arif Alvi, and Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, First Lady Samina Alvi handed over the future PNS after a prayer. Babur their new element. Both heads of state then testified to the good relations between their countries by jointly cutting the first steel section for the future Turkish patrol boat. Akhisar attended.

Presidents Alvi (right) and Erdogan on the way to the launch
Originally, the Milgem project was a purely national programme for the Turkish Navy. Its roots go back to the 1990s, when the navy first investigated the possibility of a medium surface unit designed and built entirely within the country. This resulted in three different types. In service since 2011, the Ada-class, the country on the Bosporus has four corvettes specially designed for submarine hunting. The 600 tonne larger Istanbul-The new Hisar class is multi-role capable and has a vertical launching system with 16 cells for Hisar air defence missiles. The first unit of the class has been under construction at Istanbul Naval Shipyard since 2017 with the type ship of the same name. The TF 2000 is the latest addition to the Milgem family, with a total of seven ships of the air defence frigate, which is more than twice as large, to be built in the coming years.

Corvette for Pakistan, built in Turkey
The Pakistani Milgem offshoot is similar in size and appearance to the Istanbul-class. Little is known about the armament; in addition to a 76-millimetre cannon, a VLS with 16 cells is also said to be on board. The two countries signed a corresponding purchase agreement in 2018. While two of the ships will be built at Istanbul Shipyards, two others will see the light of day at Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works in Pakistan.
Text: mb; Photos: Pakistan offz, Turkish Navy
0 Kommentare