HENSOLDT will upgrade the vision equipment used by the Turkish Navy’s Preveze Class submarines to state-of-the-art technology. The contract is worth approximately 40 million euros. For the first time, two SERO 400 systems will be combined. 

The four Class 209 submarines were built and commissioned in the 1990s. HENSOLDT will supply a total of eight SERO 400 periscopes, all of them with thermal imagers as add-on units.

The order was placed by the Turkish company Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik ve Ticaret A.Ş. (STM), which has the overall responsibility for the upgrade program. “This is already our third project with STM. 

Collaboration with our Turkish partner has been very successful, not only in the case of the AY modernization program involving our SERO 250 for the Turkish Navy, but also regarding the Agosta upgrade,” said Klaus Rettenmaier, Head of Naval Systems in HENSOLDT’s Optronics Business Line. “The decision to combine two SERO 400s was made in view of the commonality with the Turkish New Type Submarine Program (NTSP).” 

Therein, HENSOLDT is supplying a combination of the OMS 100 Optronics mast system and the SERO 400 periscope for the REIS Class submarines. In addition, HENSOLDT is also supplying the equipment for the periscope workshop in Turkey, including special tooling. This means that, as a result of the continued deployment of the SERO 400, synergies will arise not only in the area of operating and training, but also in maintenance.

Leading-Edge Periscope Systems for Submarines

The SERO 400 family represents the leading-edge in sensors, optics and electronics for classical attack missions and with optional IR module for surveillance missions.

Moreover, the visual direct view provides the experienced observer with unparalleled detail recognition, especially with regard to color fidelity and the recognition of colored position lights, for example, over long distances. The binocular eyepiece also enables to observer to gain a certain spatial impression of the scene observed, which is not possible with any two-dimensional image display on a monitor.

To make it as easy and reliable to operate as possible for the observer, top priority was given to ergonomics. The vertically positioned handles, for example, are just one sign of these efforts.

The SERO 400 family can be fully integrated into the submarine’s weapon systems enabling full remote control.