The Turkish naval forces currently have complete superiority over any state in the Black Sea basin. This is especially noticeable in the field of the submarine fleet and the armament of the Turkish Navy with anti-ship missiles - in terms of them, Ankara surpasses its most probable and strong enemy - the Black Sea Fleet, by 3-4 times.
To more or less resist the Turkish Navy, the Russian Black Sea Fleet can only with the involvement of additional funds and forces of the armed forces of the Russian Federation.
MEKO-class frigates
Turkey is armed with 8 frigates of the MEKO 200 Track I and MEKO 200 Track II projects. The oldest of them are frigates "Yavuz" and "Turgutreis", they were built in West Germany in 1987-1988.
Main performance characteristics of the project MEKO 200 TN series 1
With a displacement of 2200 tons.
Their length is 110.5 m
Width - 13.6 m
Draft - 3.7 m
Highest speed - 28 knots
The two-shaft power plant of the ship consists of four diesel engines with a total capacity of 40,000 hp.
Armament: in addition to the Sea Sparrow air defense system, Yavuz has 2 launchers (4 missiles each) of the Harpoon anti-ship complex, there is a hangar for a deck helicopter of the LAMPS system
The crew of the ship is 180 people.
The next two ships of this project "Fatih" and "Yildirim", 1988-1988. buildings, already built in Turkey, their displacement has been increased to 2900 tons. The hulls of the ships were designed taking into account the use of nuclear weapons, since the Turkish Navy (which is part of NATO) was considered the main opponents of the Black Sea Fleet of the USSR. Each compartment, out of 12, was equipped with an autonomous ventilation and fire extinguishing system, on each ship there are 2 posts of survivability and energy. The frigate retains its combat effectiveness when 3 adjacent compartments are flooded.
Then the Turkish Navy received 2 more MEKO 200 TN frigates of the 2A series - "Barbaros" and "Oruchreis" 1995-1996; then 2 frigates of the 2B series of the same project - "Salihreis" (1998), "Kemalreis" (2000). They differed in that the displacement was increased - 3380 tons, greater stability, an increase in power - 4 GTE 60,000 hp, the ammunition for the Sea Sparrow air defense system (Aspide) and the Harpoon anti-ship missile system was doubled.
Oliver Hazard Perry class frigates
In 1998-2003, Ankara received from the United States 8 American Oliver H. Perry-class URO frigates built in 1978-1981. Together with Lockheed Martin Corporation, they have been modernized in Turkish shipyards.
Their main performance characteristics: displacement 4100 tons, maximum speed 30 knots, gas turbine engine 41000 hp, the same armament as on frigates of the MEKO 200 project, but twice as large deck aircraft fleet - 2 Seahawk SH-60B helicopters each.
Only these 16 frigates are capable of striking 96 anti-ship missiles with the first salvo.
Knox-class frigates and D'Estienne d'Orves-class corvettes
In addition to 16 frigates of the 1st line, the Turkish Navy has 3 old American-built frigates built in 1970-1972 of the "Knox" type.
Performance characteristics of frigates "Knox"
Tonnage (standard) 3020 tons
Tonnage (full) 4163 tons
Overall length 133.5 m.
The maximum width is 14.3 m.
Draft (with GAS) 7, 6 m.
Power plant 1 GEM
Power 35000 hp with.
Maximum speed 27 knots
Cruising range 4500 miles at 20 knots
Crew 244 people (including 13 officers)
Armament: Artillery armament 1x1 127-mm AU Mk. 42
Torpedo-mine armament 4x3 324-mm TA
Anti-ship armament 1X8 anti-ship missiles Harpoon
Anti-submarine weapons 1x8 PU MK16 PLRK ASROC
Anti-aircraft weapons installed SAM Sea Sparrow, or ZAU Vulcan Phalanx
Aviation group 1 helicopter
Knox-class frigate.
In addition, there are 6 more French-built corvettes. 1974-1976, they are armed with PRK "Exoset". The Turks plan to keep them in service until 2028, when they will be replaced by 8 Turkish-built corvettes according to the MilGem project.
Prospects for the Turkish Navy
The lead ship of the new series according to the MilGem F511 project "Heybeliada" (using stealth technologies in the hull structure) has been launched.
Basic performance characteristics of the corvette: displacement - 1325 t, length - 99.5 m, width - 14 m, draft - 3.7 m; armament: anti-ship missiles "Harpoon" (4 units, 1 launcher) and a Seahawk SH-60B helicopter, new multifunctional medium-range Smart-S Mk2 3D radars operating in the F-band (Norwegian development)
In addition, Turkish specialists, together with designers from the firms Lockheed Martin, Saab Bofors Dynamics (missile weapons, Sweden) and Kongsberg Gruppen (ship systems, Norway), are working on the TF-2000 project URO-air defense frigate. The lead frigate of a series of 6 ships will be laid down in 2014. The prototype of a promising Turkish frigate was the Norwegian frigate F-310 Fridtjof Nansen equipped with an Aegis combat information and control system with an SPY-1F radar. The Turkish fleet is on the way to creating one large combat control system, when frigates, corvettes, missile boats, submarines become a single combat system.
The Turkish Navy has 12 missile boats, it is planned to build new mine-sweeping ships of the Alania type, new patrol boats are being built - Golcuk, Dearsan, Istanbul Denizcilik, ADIK, Celik Tekne, Desan and Sedef RMK, a program for the construction of amphibious assault ships is underway …
