Türkiye to arm 11 naval platforms with Atmaca missiles

Eleven of Türkiye’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 defence 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, DefenseNews reports.

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 kilometres (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 Türkiye’s ageing 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.

Türkiye 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 defence analyst.

Roketsan won the development contract from the Turkish government in 2009. In 2018, Roketsan teamed up with military-electronics specialist Aselsan, Türkiye’s largest defence 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.