Turkey to arm 11 naval platforms with Atmaca missiles

ANKARA, Turkey — Eleven of Turkey’s naval platforms will be armed with domestically produced Atmaca anti-ship missiles as part of a deal with state-controlled missile maker Roketsan and government-owned defense technology entity STM.

Roketsan developed the Atmaca system with surface warfare in mind. The weapon is a high-precision anti-ship missile that can arm assault boats, frigates and corvettes.

Roketsan says the system is autonomous, has a low radar cross section, can operate in all weather conditions, and features resistance to countermeasures. The company also boasts a 3D mission planning capability as well as target-update and mission-abort features via data link.

The Atmaca can fall between 4.3 meters and 5.2 meters in length. It weighs 750 kilograms (1,653 pounds) and has a range of 220 kilometers (137 miles). The system’s warhead weighs 220 kilograms.

It uses both an inertial navigation system and global positioning system for guidance.

The Atmaca will replace Turkey’s aging inventory of more than 350 American-made Harpoon missiles. STM said the integration of Atmaca missiles to the naval platforms will be completed by April 11, 2027.

Turkey will likely equip I-class frigates, the upgraded Barbaros-class Meko 200 TN and Ada-class corvettes with the Atmaca, according to Ozgur Eksi, an Ankara-based defense analyst.

Roketsan won the development contract from the Turkish government in 2009. In 2018, Roketsan teamed up with military-electronics specialist Aselsan, Turkey’s largest defense firm, to jointly manufacture Atmaca, which incorporates features of the Harpoon weapon and the French-made Exocet missile.

The Turkish government is expected to save up to $500 million by choosing the Atmaca to replace its Harpoon missiles, as the homemade weapon is about half the price of the American-made option.

Atmaca’s land variant, known as the Kara Atmaca, is a jam-resistant, long-range cruise missile system launched on tactical wheeled vehicles.

Burak Ege Bekdil was the Turkey correspondent for Defense News.

土耳其安卡拉——根据与国有导弹制造商 Roketsan 和政府所有的国防技术实体 STM 达成的协议，土耳其的 11 个海军平台将配备国产的 Atmaca 反舰导弹。

罗克特桑公司研发Atmaca系统时主要考虑的是水面作战。该武器是一种高精度反舰导弹，可以装备突击艇、护卫舰和轻型护卫舰。

Roketsan公司表示，该系统具有自主运行能力、低雷达反射截面、全天候运行特性以及抗干扰能力。该公司还宣称该系统具备三维任务规划能力，并通过数据链实现目标更新和任务中止功能。

阿特马卡导弹的长度在4.3米到5.2米之间，重750公斤（1653磅），射程为220公里（137英里）。该系统的弹头重220公斤。

它采用惯性导航系统和全球定位系统进行导航。

“阿特马卡”导弹将取代土耳其现役的350多枚美国制造的“鱼叉”导弹。STM公司表示，“阿特马卡”导弹与海军平台的整合工作将于2027年4月11日完成。

据安卡拉国防分析师奥兹古尔·埃克西称，土耳其可能会为 I 级护卫舰、升级后的巴巴罗斯级 Meko 200 TN 和阿达级轻型护卫舰配备 Atmaca 导弹。

2009 年，Roketsan 赢得了土耳其政府的开发合同。2018 年，Roketsan 与土耳其最大的国防公司、军用电子专家 Aselsan 合作，共同生产 Atmaca，该产品融合了 Harpoon 武器和法国制造的 Exocet 导弹的特点。

土耳其政府选择阿特马卡导弹取代其鱼叉导弹，预计将节省高达 5 亿美元，因为这种国产武器的价格约为美国制造的同类武器的一半。

Atmaca 的陆基版本，即 Kara Atmaca，是一种抗干扰、远程巡航导弹系统，由战术轮式车辆发射。

布拉克·埃格·贝克迪尔是《防务新闻》的土耳其通讯员。