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The First National Weapon System to Be Used on REİS-Class Submarines Will Be the MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mine!

The Turkish Naval Forces Command (TNFC) is preparing to place its first order for the serial production of MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mines in the coming days. The large-scale order, which is expected to be in triple digits, the initial batch is planned for delivery in 2025, with final deliveries projected to be completed by 2033.

Date: Issue 136 - January 2025

The MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mines will first be deployed on the Type 214TN REİS-Class Submarines. This is primarily because the ISUS-90/72-based Combat Management System (CMS) and 533mm torpedo tubes on REİS-Class submarines were designed from the construction stage to have the capabilities necessary for carrying and deploying naval mines. During the Sea Acceptance Test (SAT) phase of the TCG Pirireis (S-330) Submarine—the first submarine of the REİS-Class, commissioned in a formal ceremony on August 24, 2024—two MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mines were loaded into and removed from one of the torpedo tubes as a trial to verify their fit. Following this assessment, it was determined that each torpedo tube could accommodate three MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mines. A new loading and unloading test is planned based on this finding. Of the eight torpedo tubes on the REİS-Class Submarines, four were manufactured with the capability to carry and deploy naval mines such as the MALAMAN. Additionally, MALAMAN mines can be deployed from the TCG Bayraktar and TCG Sancaktar LST ships in the TNFC inventory. It is also anticipated that the ability to carry and deploy MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mines will be integrated into PREVEZE and GÜR-Class Submarines in the future.

The MALAMAN Smart Bottom Mine and its Electronic Module—developed under the MALAMAN Project initiated with a contract signed in December 2018 for the development of GRP-Cased National Bottom Mines—were created in collaboration between KoçSavunma, MKE, and TÜBİTAK SAGE. The electronic module, which acts as the "brain" of the mine, is also capable of acoustic intelligence, collecting and analyzing acoustic signatures in the waters where it is deployed for intelligence purposes. After approximately 1.5 years of qualification tests, including planned detonation trials, the system successfully completed the process. As of August 2024, it has become a proven, shelf-ready product.