The first diver detection sonar produced with domestic and national resources, has been integrated into TCG Anadolu. It is pointed out that the system, which only few countries in the world can produce, is a very important gain for Turkey.
Defense and Maritime Researcher Kozan Selçuk Erkan said, “This should be seen as a very valuable ‘first step’ for us. A sonar family is forming here. In the first place, we made the diver detection sonar. In the future, we will also produce different types of sonar that can undertake different tasks. Aras 2023 is the first member of this family.’.
Sabotage of natural gas lines, what happened in Ukraine and more… After all this, the eyes were once again turned to the threat of ‘divers’. Turkey is one of the few countries that produces diver detection sonar with domestic and national resources. Aras 2023, which is attached to TCG Anadolu, is expected to be used in critical structures under water or close to the shore in the near future.
Aras 2023, the first diver detection sonar produced with domestic and national resources, was recently integrated into TCG Anadolu, one of the pride projects of the Turkish defense industry. TCG Anadolu, which has highly developed defense systems against threats coming from above the water, is also strictly protected against threats that may come from under the water.
Although diver detection sonars have been used primarily for the protection of military ships and military facilities, this situation is changing rapidly today. One of the most important reasons for this change is the fact that the terrorist threat has taken a different dimension today. This brings another consequence. It’s a matter of protecting civilian facilities underwater, on or on shore.
For a country like Turkey, which is surrounded by sea on three sides, has come to an end in its nuclear power plant project, and has established a huge natural gas storage center on the Black Sea coast, diver detection sonars have much greater meaning.
Detects threats from 1 kilometer away
Aras 2023, Turkey’s first diver detection sonar produced with national means, has the signature of Armelsan. General Manager Can Emre Maintenance first draws a general framework for sonar. Aras says the 2023 diver detection sonar system has been developed to detect underwater divers with closed and open circuit breathing systems and diver transportation vehicles.
This system automatically detects targets at a distance of about 1 kilometer. This saves the user/operator about half an hour of intervention time. Another point that Maintenance emphasizes is the fact that asymmetric warfare is now carried under water. He underlines that the way for the use of diver detection sonar for civilian areas was opened especially with the Ukraine-Russia war.
Can Emre Care, who warns that kamikaze unmanned sea vehicles are starting to come to the fore as well as kamikaze drones, says that the new version of Aras 2023 will detect such threats quickly and accurately.
He also points out that they will share with the public a very important export news about the diver detection sonar signed ‘Made in Turkey’ in a short time.
“There Are 4-5 Countries In The World That Can Produce This”
It is important that diver detection sonar is produced in Turkey and installed on TCG Anadolu. However, there is another side of the coin. The changing threat of terrorism… TRT News, Defense and Maritime Researcher Kozan talked about this aspect of the business with Selçuk Erkan.
Pointing out that there are 4 or 5 countries that can produce diver detection sonar, Erkan said, “We are among these countries.” says. Asked why it is important to produce diver detection sonar locally, Erkan said, “This should be seen as a very valuable ‘first step’ for us. A family of sonar is being formed here. We made the diver detection sonar in the first place. Different types of sonar can take on different tasks in the later processes. We will also produce. Aras 2023 is the first member of this family.” gives the answer.
An Invaluable Achievement for Proxy Wars
At this point, Erkan explains the changing nature of terrorism in more detail and underlines that some countries that do not want their traces to be seen in certain places have begun to gain more skills to their ‘proxies’.
Explaining that a similar operation is seen in Ukraine, Kozan Selçuk Erkan said, “We have seen kamikaze boats, kamikaze drones and similar very different systems there. It is a process driven by proxies. Turkey is undoubtedly one of the countries that feels this threat the most when it comes to terrorist acts through proxies. ” says.
Diver Training for Terrorists from the USA
Reminding that US experts gave ‘diving training’ to a group of terrorists in Syria in the past days, Erkan says that this situation will directly affect Turkey and continues: We are the only country in this region to have a conflict of interest with the sovereign powers in the maritime or other policies. That’s why it’s good to take the threat seriously. This threat does not only apply to military ships or military installations. A similar problem may exist for dams. Such asymmetrical elements can also damage our dams and many of our fixed facilities under water. There are valve lines and power line cables under the water. We have natural gas lines and ongoing drilling in the Black Sea. There is also a very serious storage and distribution line in the port. Diver detection sonar is a very valuable system for all these places.
This System is also a Condition for Senior Government Officials
Kozan Selçuk Erkan touches upon another interesting point… He reminds us that high-level foreign names visiting Turkey are hosted in Istanbul or sometimes in summer places. In the same way, it points out that some high-ranking names are staying near the coast.
Erkan underlines the necessity of protecting such places with diver detection sonar on a 24/7 basis, and concludes his words as follows:
“Technology is developing for both sides. On the one hand, we talk about UAVs and SİDAs, but it should not be overlooked that this technology can be used by asymmetric elements.
Maybe we’ll talk more often about kamikaze underwater robots that can go underwater soon. We have to take action now. And the first step to that is diver detection sonar.
For this reason, it is essential to realize Aras 2023 and increase its usage areas. It is necessary to increase our ‘eyes that see under water’. For these reasons, it is an extremely critical capability that we are one of the few countries that can produce diver detection sonar.”
The opinions expressed herein are the author’s and not necessarily those of News2Sea.
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