Turkmenistan Moves To Revamp
Its Soviet-era Sea Services
BY AMI INTERNATIONAL INC.
To prepare for the inaugura- tion of a new naval force and
Coast Guard in 2015, the government of Turkmenistan has ordered
two Turkish Dearsan 400-ton
patrol boats, similar to those currently being built for the Turkish
Navy. The boats are capable of surface and anti-submarine engagements in the Caspian Sea.
The boats will be equipped with
the Thales Scout Variant 2D air
surveillance radar, the Aselsan
ASELFLIR-200D electro-optics
director, Aselsan/Rocketsan anti-submarine warfare rockets, the
OTO Melara 40mm/70 gun and
two 25mm Aselsan STOP gun
mounts. The vessels are expected
to be delivered in 2013.
Turkmenistan began discussions
concerning its sea services in 2009
in order to modernize and reorganize the now-defunct force left over
from the Soviet era, when it was a
constituent republic. The timeline
calls for the completion of the two
modern sea services by 2015. A
new naval base and academy are
being developed and will reside in
Turkmebashi when completed.
The Navy will be responsible for
the security of Turkmenistan’s coastal
waters and offshore oil facilities in
the Caspian Sea, while the Coast
Guard will continue to be responsible
for its traditional police roles along
the coast, rivers and harbors.
The Coast Guard operates myriad aging ex-Soviet and U.S.-supplied patrol craft and requires a
major replacement effort if it
intends to move forward with its
modernization. The Coast Guard is
expected to begin its procurement
initiatives soon.
As Turkmenistan already is
familiar with Turkish procurement
procedures, equipment and training, the nation is considered likely
to procure additional vessels from
Turkey, such as larger naval patrol
vessels from Dearsan and smaller
fast patrol craft from Yonca-Onuk.
Egypt Orders
New Patrol Craft
The Egyptian Navy has ordered six
multirole tactical platform (MRTP-
20) patrol craft from Yonca-Onuk
of Turkey. Under the terms of the
contract, Yonca-Onuk will transfer
technology and co-produce the
craft. Five of the vessels would be
built at Yonca’s facility in Istanbul,
while the last unit would be built
in Alexandria, Egypt.
The MRTP- 20 currently is in
service with the Turkish Coast
Guard. The 20.4-meter ( 66.9-foot)
patrol craft is powered by twin diesel
engines and capable of speeds in
excess of 60 knots. The cost of the
procurement is estimated at $25.5
million. The first craft was expected
to be delivered this fall. The class
could be fully operational by 2014.
The vessels are designed to
carry out a wide range of littoral
and coastal water law-enforcement
and naval duties, as well as open-sea rescue.
Mauritius Orders OPV
To Bolster Coast Guard
The government of Mauritius has
ordered a 77-meter (252-foot) offshore patrol vessel (OPV) from
India’s Garden Reach Shipyard and
Engineering (GRSE) for $59 million.
The 77-meter OPV is a GRSE
design and will replace the Mauri-
tius Coast Guard’s flagship, the
1,650-ton Vigilant patrol ship. The
new OPV is expected to be deliv-
ered by early 2013, as the contract
called for delivery 32 months after
signing.
General Dynamics
Buys Metro Machine
General Dynamics Corp., Falls
Church, Va., has purchased Metro
Machine Corp., a privately held
ship-repair facility in Norfolk, Va.
The value of the cash transaction
was not disclosed.
Since the early 1970s, the shipyard has been the prime contractor
on repair work for frigates, cruisers, amphibious ships and auxiliaries based in the Hampton Roads,
Va., region. It employs more than
400 personnel.
Metro Machine will join the shipbuilding and repair operations of
General Dynamic’s NASSCO (
National Steel and Shipbuilding Co.), a
business unit based in San Diego.
General Dynamics owns two other
East Coast shipyard facilities: Bath
