Karachi Shipbuilding Boom Expected With Pakistan Navy Modernization

[Riaz Haq]

Pakistan is launching domestic construction of warships, submarines and missile boats as part of its ambitious naval modernization program in collaboration with China, according to media reports.

Karachi Shipyard

Chinese media reports have described a building program involving six of eight S-20 AIP-equipped variants of the Type-039A/Type-041 submarine under negotiation; four "Improved F-22P" frigates equipped with enhanced sensors and weaponry (possibly including the HQ-17 surface-to-air missile developed from the Russian Tor 1/SA-N-9); and six Type-022 Houbei stealth catamaran missile boats, to be built by Pakistan's state-owned shipbuilder Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW), according to DefenseNews.

Pakistan is expanding and modernizing its underwater fleet with 8 additional AIP-equipped submarines jointly built with China.  Mansoor Ahmed of Quaid-e-Azam University told Defense News that AIP-equipped conventional submarines "provide reliable second strike platforms, [and] an assured capability resides with [nuclear-powered attack and nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines], which are technically very complex and challenging to construct and operate compared to SSKs, and also very capital intensive."

Expansion of KSEW in Karachi includes a new foundry, fabrication facilities to cover all aspects of ship construction, berthing facilities, and two graving docks of 26,000 and 18,000 dead weight tons, spread over 71 acres. A 7,881-ton ship lift transfer system will be completed next year. KSEW will expand to occupy facilities vacated by the Navy as it transfers from Karachi to Ormara. The Pakistan Navy Dockyard, which is adjacent to KSEW, already has facilities upgraded by the French during construction of Agosta-90B submarines.

The Pakistan Navy modernization efforts further expands existing China-Pakistan military manufacturing collaboration at Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) which has resulted in design and manufacturing of JF-17 fighter jets for Pakistan Air Force.

JF-17 Fighter Jet

In addition to designing and building military hardware together, Pakistan and China are also increasingly collaborating on manufacturing consumer appliances and products. The Pakistan-China economic corridor project includes setting up of several special economic zones for this purpose. A good example of this cooperation is Haier-Ruba special economic zone in Lahore.  Haier-Ruba joint venture in Pakistan has announced plans to start manufacturing laptops and smartphones in Lahore this year, according to the JV chairman Shah Faisal Afridi. The Haier-Ruba group is one of the largest manufacturers of polyester yarn and home appliances in the country.

The growth of both military and civilian manufacturing industries is helping to develop Pakistan's human capital and creating job opportunities for engineers, technicians and other workers. 

Pakistan has taken a page from China's industrialization playbook which shows that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) led the nation's industrial growth, first with military hardware and then expanding into consumer and industrial product manufacturing.

Related Links:

Haq's Musings

Pakistan to Deploy AIP Subs For 2nd Strike

Pakistani Military Pushing Industrialization

IDEAS 2014: Pakistan's Arms Bazar

Pakistan-China Industrial Corridor to Boost FDI, Manufacturing and ...

Haier Pakistan to Expand to Consumer Electronics

India's Israel Envy: What If Modi Attacks Pakistan?

Pakistan's Human Capital

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan #Navy gets 2nd ATR-72 MPA, featuring acoustic processing system, sonobuoy launchers, broadband #satellite #communications system, electronic support measures suite, a self-protection suite, and 2 weapon hard-points, anti-#submarine warfare (ASW) https://www.janes.com/article/89795/pakistan-navy-receives-second-a...

The Pakistan Navy (PN) has received the second of two ATR-72 twin-engine turboprops converted into maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) under a contract signed in 2015.

In a 10 July press release Germany-based company Rheinland Air Service (RAS) said that it handed over the second example of the type, which is now known as the RAS 72 Sea Eagle, during a ceremony held at RAS headquarters in Mönchengladbach shortly after the platform was introduced to the general public at the Paris Air Show 2019, which was held from 17 to 23 June.

The first aircraft, which was handed over by RAS in June 2018, re-entered service with the PN on 12 December 2018 in a ceremony held at naval air station PNS Mehran in Karachi (both ATR-72s had previously been in service with the PN as transports).

The RAS 72 Sea Eagle is equipped with a long-range, active electronically scanned array (AESA) multimode radar, as well as electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) sensors to deliver aerial, maritime, and ground surveillance, according to RAS.

The platform also features an acoustic processing system, sonobuoy launchers, a broadband satellite communications system, an electronic support measures suite, a self-protection suite, and two weapon hard-points, enabling anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and maritime patrol capabilities. The PN's two RAS 72 Sea Eagles also feature Aerodata's mission management system, called AeroMission, for ASW.

"The variety of state-of-the-art on-board sensors enable operators and decision makers to detect and identify sensitive targets above or below the surface of the ocean, while transmitting all the information captured on-board in real-time to the dedicated command centre," said the company, adding that the RAS 72 Sea Eagle offers operational flexibility as it can be used not only for ASW and maritime patrol missions but also for search-and-rescue and other humanitarian operations.

[Riaz Haq]

Could Pakistan Sink an Indian Aircraft Carrier in a War?
What does the evidence suggest? 

by Robert Beckhusen

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/could-pakistan-sink-indian-a...

Essentially, this makes Indian carriers’ self-defeating, with the flattops existing primarily to defend themselves from attack rather than taking the fight to their enemy. Carriers are also expensive symbols of national prestige, and it is unlikely the Indian Navy will want to risk losing one, two or all three. Under the circumstances, India’s investment in carriers makes more sense symbolically, and primarily as a way of keeping shipyards busy and shipyard workers employed.

The Indian Navy has put out a proposal for its third aircraft carrier, tentatively titled the Vishal due to enter service in the latter 2020s. The 65,000-ton Vishal will be significantly larger than India’s sole current carrier, the Vikramaditya known formerly as the ex-Soviet Admiral Gorshkov, and the incoming second one, the domestically-built Vikrantwhich is expected to enter service later in 2018.

To see why Vishal is a big deal for the Indian Navy, one needs only to look at her proposed air wing — some 57 fighters, more than Vikramaditya — 24 MiG-29Ks — and Vikrant‘s wing of around 30 MiG-29Ks. While below the 75+ aircraft aboard a U.S. Navy Gerald R. Ford-class supercarrier, Vishal will be a proper full-size carrier and India’s first, as the preceding two are really small-deck carriers and limited in several significant ways.

The Indian Navy is also looking at an electromagnetic launch system for its third carrier, similar to the one aboard the Ford class. India’s first two carriers have STOBAR configurations, in which aircraft launch with the assistance of a ski-jump, which limits the maximum weight a plane can lift into the air. Typically this means that fighters must sacrifice weapons, or fuel thus limiting range, or a combination of both.

Most likely, India would attempt to enforce a blockade of Pakistan and use its carriers to strike land-based targets. But Pakistan has several means to attack Indian carriers — with near-undetectable submarines and anti-ship missiles — which must also operate relatively far from India itself in the western and northern Arabian Sea. China does not have a similar disadvantage, as the PLAN would likely keep its carriers close and within the “first island chain” including Taiwan, closer to shore where supporting aircraft and ground-based missile launchers can help out.

Thus, Indian carriers would be relatively vulnerable and only one of them will have aircraft capable of launching with standard ordnance and fuel. And that is after Vishal sets sail in the next decade.

To directly threaten Pakistan, the small-deck carriers will have to maneuver nearer to shore — and thereby closer to “anti-access / area denial” weapons which could sink them. And even with a third carrier, the threat of land-based Pakistani aircraft will force the Indian Navy to dedicate a large proportion of its own air wings to defense — perhaps half of its available fighters, according to 2017 paper by Ben Wan Beng Ho for the Naval War College Review.

“Therefore, it is doubtful that any attack force launched from an Indian carrier would pack a significant punch,” Ho writes. “With aircraft available for strike duties barely numbering into the double digits, the Indian carrier simply cannot deliver a substantial ‘pulse’ of combat power against its adversary.”

[Riaz Haq]

Based at Karachi, the Pakistan Navy operates a fleet of five diesel-electric submarines and three MG110 mini submarines. [1] Pakistan views its submarine force as necessary to maintain its "credible minimum deterrence" posture. [2]

https://www.nti.org/analysis/articles/pakistan-submarine-capabilities/


Capabilities at a Glance
Total Submarines in Fleet: 8

Ballistic Missile Submarines (SSBNs): 0
Nuclear-Powered attack submarines (SSNs): 0
Diesel-electric attack submarines (SSKs): 5
Mini Submarines (SSMs): 3
Air-independent propulsion (AIP) enabled: 3/8

The current fleet primarily consists of two Agosta-70 boats (Hashmat-class) and three modern Agosta-90B (Khalid-class) submarines, all of French design. Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KSEW) indigenously constructed Pakistan’s third Agosta-90B submarine PNS Hamza (S139) and commissioned it on 26 September 2008. [10] The PNS Hamza features French company Naval Group’s MESMA (Module d'EnergieSous-Marin Autonome) air-independent propulsion (AIP) system, making it the first conventional submarine built in South Asia to feature AIP propulsion. [11] In 2011, Pakistan retrofit the two earlier Agosta-90B vessels with MESMA during overhauls.
[12]

--------------------------

Turkish firm STM signed a contract yesterday to enhance capabilities of Pakistan Navy’s Agosta 90B Submarines.

https://www.defenseworld.net/news/24433/Turkish_STM_to_Enhance_Capa...
The company will modernize four Pak submarines.

The bid for the submarine modernization tender was won by STM in June 2016 against the submarines' French manufacturers.

The Agosta-class submarine is a class of diesel-electric fast-attack submarine developed and constructed in France to succeed the Daphné submarines.

The Agosta–90B class submarines is an improved version with modern systems, better battery with longer endurance, deeper diving capability, lower acoustic cavitation and better automatic control (reducing crew from 54 to 36). It can be equipped with the MESMA air-independent propulsion (AIP) system. It is capable of carrying a combined load up to 16 torpedoes, SM39 Exocet anti-ship missile and seaborne nuclear cruise missiles.

The submarines were built through the technology transfer by France to Pakistan.

[Riaz Haq]

#China, #Pakistan complete 9-day joint #naval exercise in #ArabianSea. Special forces, warships, submarines and warplanes participated in live-fire drills. #India sent aircraft carrier to monitor events amid simmering tensions in region #CPEC https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3046064/china-pak... via @scmpnews

Chinese and Pakistani troops completed a nine-day naval exercise in the Arabian Sea on Tuesday, against a backdrop of simmering tensions in the Middle East and South Asia.
The operation – Sea Guardians 2020 – was the sixth joint naval drill between the two countries and took place in the northern reaches of the waterway and along the Pakistani shoreline. It involved special forces, warships, aerial assets and, for the first time, submarines in a series of live-fire exercises.
Tensions have been running high in the region since the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in a US air strike earlier this month and the increased hostility between India and Pakistan in the disputed region of Kashmir

While the US and India were likely to have been keeping a close eye on the exercises – New Delhi deployed an aircraft carrier to monitor events – experts said the operation was largely routine and not intended to stoke tensions.
“It was planned well in advance, long before things began escalating in the Middle East,” said Du Youkang, director of the Pakistan Study Centre at Fudan University in Shanghai.

James Dorsey, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, agreed, saying the drills should not be seen as a reaction by China to the tensions in the Middle East.
“I don’t think it’s an issue of showing more muscle in the region … you have an ongoing cooperation between Pakistan and China and this is part of it,” he said.

“Others may read it as a signal, but I don’t think it’s the driving incentive. But the cooperation [between China and Pakistan] will be closely followed by India and the United States.”

Nonetheless, Beijing has been expanding its military presence in the Middle East, and last month took part in a four-day exercise with Russian and Iranian forces in the northern part of the Indian Ocean.
Dorsey said that the drills coincided with a shift in the security architecture in the region.
“Over a period of time, we will see changes, moving from a unipolar, US-centric system to a multipolar arrangement,” he said.
“That would most probably include China, as well as Russia, and potentially countries like India. It’s all on the drawing board, but that’s clearly the trend.”

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan and #China launch joint #naval drills for “augmenting interoperability and strategic cooperation.” Should #India be concerned? https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/surface-navy-assoc...

A nine-day Sino-Pakistani naval exercise commenced in Pakistan’s port of Karachi on Monday with the arrival of a Chinese naval task group from its South Sea Fleet. Sea Guardians 2020 is the sixth in the bilateral series, which, according to the Pakistan Navy, will focus on “augmenting interoperability and strategic cooperation.”

The exercise will include a range of drills to share “professional experiences on contemporary and non-traditional threats at sea” to improve regional security cooperation, plus promote a “safe and sustainable maritime environment.”

While stating the exercise aims to “enhance the capabilities of the two navies to jointly cope with maritime terrorism and crime,” China’s military media branch stressed it had “nothing to do with the regional situation and is not target[ing] at any third party.”

This was likely an attempt to reassure India that the drills were unrelated to the tension between rivals India and Pakistan.

However, India will certainly have noted that Sea Guardians included warlike air defense systems, anti-missile technology, anti-submarine warfare capabilities, and live-fire and joint marine training drills.

Sidharth Kaushal, a research fellow specializing in sea power at the Royal United Services Institute think tank, said “India has generally regarded Chinese exercises and naval activity in the Indian Ocean with apprehension.” Consequently, New Delhi has invested in countering China’s naval presence.

“The Indian Navy’s efforts over the past decade to improve its situational awareness in the region and to upgrade the capabilities of tri-service command in Andaman and Nicobar reflects a growing consensus that the [Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy] will be a challenger in the [Indian Ocean region] in the foreseeable future,” Kaushal said.

[Riaz Haq]

#China Lays Keel for #Pakistan #Navy’s 2nd 4000-Ton Type 054A #Missile Frigate. The stealth frigate is armed with HQ-16 medium range air defense missiles and capable of firing anti-ship and air defense missiles & anti-submarine torpedoes. @Diplomat_APAC https://thediplomat.com/2020/03/china-lays-keel-for-pakistan-navys-...

China conducted a keel-laying ceremony on March 23 at the Hudong Zhonghua shipyard in Shanghai for the second of four Type 054A/P multi-role frigates destined for service in the Pakistan Navy, the service announced in a recent statement.

The ceremony was reportedly attended by officials from Hudong Zhonghua Shipyard, Pakistan Navy officers and Chinese defense industry representatives.

According to Pakistan Navy spokesperson, Rear Admiral M. Arshid Javed, Type 054A/P frigates “are technologically advanced platforms which will strengthen [Pakistan Navy] combat capability and maintain peace [and] stability in the [Indian Ocean region].”

Last November, China’s Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding also held a steel cutting ceremony for the Pakistan Navy’s third and fourth Type 054A/P multi-role frigate.

The Type 054A/P is an improved export version of the Type 054 frigate that is in service with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). The Pakistan Navy ordered four new multi-tole frigates from China. A contract for the third and fourth Type 054A/P multirole frigates was signed in June 2018, while a contract for the first and second Type 054A/P frigate was signed in 2017.

Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month.

Type 054A/P guided-missile frigates are multipurpose naval platforms. In January 2018, I described the technical characteristics and armament of the 4,000-ton surface combatants:

The stealth frigate is armed with HQ-16 medium range air defense missiles and boosts a 32-cell vertical launching system (VLS) in the forward section, capable of firing anti-ship and air defense missiles as well as anti-submarine torpedoes.

Weapon systems aboard the ship include HQ-16 medium-range air defense missiles, C-803 anti-ship/land-attack cruise missiles and Yu-7 torpedo launchers, Type 97 240-millimeter anti-submarine rocket launchers and Type 726-4 18-tube decoy rocket launchers.

The ships also feature air defense systems allowing each individual warship to engage aerial targets at a distance of up to 40 kilometers. Additionally, I explained:

It also features a Russian-made AK-630 fully automatic naval close in weapon system and a Chinese variant of the AK-176 76-millimeter naval gun.

(…) In addition, the ship is equipped with a Type 382 phased-array radar system and Type 344 and Type 345 multifunctional fire control radar systems, capable of over the horizon targeting.

Type 054A frigates also feature a hangar capable of accommodation Kamov K-27 and Harbin Z-9 helicopters or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). (…)

As I noted previously, each Type 054A/P frigate is powered by four SEMT Pielstick engines and can achieve top speeds of 27 knots.

“The ship has a standard range of about 3,800 nautical miles – 7,037 kilometers – at a speed of 18 knots, and a maximum un-refueled radius is 12,000 kilometers or 8,000 miles,” I explained elsewhere.

[Riaz Haq]

Mystery Submarine In Service With #PakistanNavy SEALs (#Navy SSG) that you won’t find in any reference books. It is similar to the #US Navy's SDVs (SEAL delivery vehicles). Pakistani Navy Chariots can be carried by the larger X-Craft. #Pakistan via @forbes https://www.forbes.com/sites/hisutton/2020/04/15/mystery-submarine-...

Some of the best-kept secrets are hidden in plain sight. Sitting on the quayside at PNS Iqbal, a special naval base in Karachi, Pakistan, is a submarine that you won’t find in any reference books, including my own World Submarines Covert Shores Recognition Guide. To my knowledge this will be the first article detailing this submarine, which appears to be in service with Pakistani Navy SEALs.

The submarine is a small special forces type, measuring around 55 feet long by 7 to 8 feet across. That is a fraction of the size of a regular submarine. Its location and size both point to use by the Pakistani Navy's Special Service Group, known as SSG (N). They are equivalent to the U.S. Navy SEALs and use the 'SEAL' terminology. They have a long tradition of training with the American unit.

This category of submarine is called an X-Craft in Pakistani Navy parlance. The term was inherited from the Italian manufacturer Cos.Mo.S (commonly written Cosmos) who sold Pakistan two sets of midget submarines in the past. The Italian firm itself borrowed the term from the Royal Navy midget submarines of World War II. The American equivalent to the X-Craft is the Dry Combat Submersible (DCS) now entering service with the U.S. Navy SEALs.


It may be intended to replace the Pakistani Navy's existing X-Craft. Pakistan operates three MG-110 X-Craft which were built locally between 1993 and 1996. They are getting long in the tooth and are due for replacement. But the Italian firm which designed them, Cos.Mo.S was closed down twenty years ago. Today its designs are continued by respected Italian manufacturer Drass. They offer a series of modern X-Craft that may be ideal for Pakistan.

But this mystery submarine does not appear to be a Drass design. The smallest publicly revealed Drass design is the DG-85, which is slightly larger than the boat seen in Pakistan.

One clue is that the boat first appeared in 2016. This may tie to a statement in the Pakistani Defence Production Division (MoDP) 2015-16 yearbook. It listed the "Indigenous design and construction of 01 Midget Submarine" as a target for 2016-2017.

Since then there have been reports that Turkish firm STM (Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik ve Ticaret A.Ş.) was jointly developing a mini-submarine with Pakistan. This could indicate that the mystery craft was not successful and so a new design is being developed. Another possibility is that the Turkish partnership will focus on smaller 'chariots.' These are similar to the U.S. Navy's SDVs (SEAL delivery vehicles). In the Pakistani Navy the Chariots can be carried by the larger X-Craft.

Analysis of commercial satellite imagery shows that the boat rarely (if ever) goes in the water. The only clear image showing it in the water is from 2016. The operational status is therefore unclear. The tent that covers it is often moved, however, suggesting ongoing maintenance. So the sub cannot be written off, but what it's called and what exactly it does remains a mystery.

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan Navy's #Submarine Fleet is #US Navy #SEALTeam’s Dream. Midget subs perfect for special ops & capable of firing standard 533 millimeter torpedoes in addition to carrying two Special Service Teams. #SSG https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/pakistan%E2%80%99s-submarine...

Though small and non-nuclear, Pakistan’s submarine fleet would excel at coastal defense in Pakistan’s littoral waters—and inserting Special Service Teams, Pakistan’s Navy Seals.



Pakistan operates five French-designed Agosta-class submarines. The first of these hulls were initially built for the South African Navy, but were sold to Pakistan in the late 1970s and early 1980s after a United Nations arms embargo prevented their delivery. The Agosta-class is a relatively small diesel-electric submarine design with a crew complement of just 54 sailors and 5 officers.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, France revisited the Agosta-class design and built the “improved” Agosta-class, also known as Agosta 90B-class, in consultation with the Pakistani Navy. A high level of automation within the sub reduced the crew to just 36, despite the larger size and higher complexity of the design.

Stronger hull materials were used during the hull’s construction which increased the Agosta 90B-class’ maximum dive depth. Higher-capacity batteries were also installed, increasing the range of the sub, and acoustic improvements were also incorporated into the propulsion system, reducing the submarine’s acoustic signature.

Standard diesel-electric submarines use periscope-like snorkels to provide air to onboard diesel generators that recharge their batteries. Newer designs, including the Agosta 90B-class, are equipped with air-independent propulsion systems that can provide power without needing air from the surface.

The Agosta 90B-class’ AIP system provides auxiliary power to the sub that can be used for propulsion, onboard electrical systems, or recharging the sub’s batteries—allowing the Agosta 90B-class to be submerged three times longer than the preceding Agosta-class.

Both classes have four standard 533 millimeter torpedo tubes that provide anti-submarine and anti-surface capabilities. Additionally, both the Agosta- and Agosta 90B-class can fire French-developed Exocet anti-ship missiles via their torpedo tubes.

The Exocet has a range of around 70 kilometers, or about 45 miles, giving both classes a more discrete and stand-off anti-ship capability, as the missile is fired from depth in a watertight container that brings the missile to the surface.

In addition, Pakistan has several interesting submarines that are on the smaller side.

Pakistan also operates a small fleet of Italian-designed midget submarines, the Cosmos-class. The Cosmos are also diesel-electric and serve primarily as delivery vehicles for Pakistan’s Special Service Group, their Navy SEAL-equivalent.

Though not primarily intended for attacking surface vessels, the Cosmos-class is capable of firing standard 533 millimeter torpedoes in addition to carrying two Special Service Teams.

Pakistan’s newest submarine is also quite small, and likely intended for the Special Service Group in much the same role as the Cosmos-class..

The submarine, provisionally called the X-class, is about 55 feet long and 7 or 8 feet wide. Though it reportedly does not often leave its dock, satellite imagery shows that repair, maintenance, and construction is ongoing.

There had also been reports that Turkey was partnering with Pakistan to co-develop a midget submarine to replace the Cosmos-class, though if anything came to fruition from that project is unclear.

Though Pakistan’s navy is not particularly large, it may not matter. Pakistan doesn’t have a terribly large coast to defend. If their latest “X-class” sub ever comes to fruition, the Special Service Teams would likely be pleased.

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan successfully test-fires anti-ship missiles. #PakistanNavy said in the statement that warships and airplanes fired anti-ship missiles at sea level which hit their targets accurately. #defense http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2020-04/25/c_139007483.htm

Pakistan successfully conducted a test firing of anti-ship missiles in the North Arabian Sea, said a statement from the Pakistan Navy on Saturday.

The spokesperson of the Pakistan Navy said in the statement that warships and airplanes fired anti-ship missiles at sea level which hit their targets accurately.

Pakistani Chief of the Naval Staff Zafar Mahmood Abbasi witnessed firing of the missiles and expressed satisfaction over operational preparedness of the Pakistan Navy, the spokesperson added.

The Naval chief said the Pakistan Navy is fully capable to give a befitting response to any aggression, adding that the successful test-fire of missiles is proof of the Pakistan Navy's operational preparedness, according to the statement.

In December last year, the Pakistan Navy also test-fired different anti-ship missiles in the North Arabian Sea, which were fired by warships and airplanes at sea level.

[Riaz Haq]

#Pakistan’s Next-Generation #Warship MILGEM: High-tech & integrated systems. From situational awareness to electronic warfare (EW) to munitions, MILGEM as well as Type 054A/P will both set the standard for the PN’s surface warships. #tech https://quwa.org/2020/05/03/the-jinnah-class-frigate-pakistans-next... via @QuwaGroup

Most of the PN MILGEM’s subsystems will come from Turkey. In fact, Aselsan secured a $191 million US contract in November 2019 to supply subsystems for the PN MILGEM program.

For the PN, the reason for this selection is likely a mix of factors, the foremost being Turkey’s willingness to extend a loan for the program. That loan likely covers Turkish origin products and services, so financing is easier for the PN. Turkey also already integrated those systems, so integration costs are lower as well.

However, these systems are also designed for a NATO end-user (Turkey), so there could be a measure of quality or performance involved as well. In a way, Turkey has become Pakistan’s intermediary for Western and NATO-grade technologies it is unable to acquire (at least affordably) from Europe.

Finally, Turkey showed a willingness to open or modify its subsystems so that the PN can integrate its own weapons, data links, and other systems to those solutions.

Aselsan SMART-S Mk2

The PN MILGEM’s main search and targeting radar will be the SMART-S Mk2. The design belongs to Thales Group (Thales Nederland), but Aselsan manufactures the radar under license.[5] However, in the years since it took on the program, the company succeeded in sourcing many critical radar components domestically. In fact, Thales is sourcing the transmitter/receiver modules (TRM) of these radars from Aselsan.[6]

The Aselsan SMART-S Mk2 is an active phased array radar offering an instrumented range of 250 km. The radar can detect and track up to 500 airborne and surface targets. Based on Thales Nederland’s catalogue, the radar can track missiles at 50 km, and maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) at 200 km.[7]

The radar is marketed with dedicated electronic counter-countermeasures (ECCM) capability, suggesting a measure of defensibility against radar jamming/spoofing.

Aselsan ARES-2NC

The Aselsan ARES-2NC is a variant of the electronic support measures (ESM) suite the PN selected for use from the Agosta 90B submarine (ARES-2N). The ESM suite will allow the MILGEMs to passively monitor as well as categorize and record enemy radar and communication signals. In turn, the MILGEMs will add the signals to a threat library in which electronic attack (EA) assets can use to spoof/jam enemy emitters.[8]

However, the ARES-2NC offers an additional capability: the ability to engage in EA through a directional radar-frequency (RF) jamming system. The ARES-2NC uses digital radio frequency memory (DRFM) for its EA role, covering a frequency range of 7.5-18 GHz. It is also equipped with a radar warning receiver (RWR), so it will alert the crew of enemy radar targeting against the ship…