Next Generation National Heavyweight Torpedo AKYA Scores Direct Hit in First Live Fire Test!
During the weekly press briefing on the activities of the Ministry of National Defence held on December 21, 2023, Rear Admiral (LH) Zeki AKTÜRK, Press and Public Relations Advisor, announced that the firing test of the Next Generation National Heavyweight Torpedo AKYA from the TCG Preveze Submarine would take place in the Gulf of Antalya on December 26, 2023. Rear Admiral AKTÜRK referred to this test as a 'first.' This is because it will be the first firing test conducted with a live warhead.
The firing of the AKYA Torpedo by the TCG Preveze Submarine in the Eastern Mediterranean on December 27, 2023, was monitored in real-time from the Combat Information Center (CIC) of the Gabya Class Frigate TCG Gökova by the Turkish Naval Forces Commander Admiral Ercüment TATLIOĞLU, Secretary of Defence Industries President Haluk GÖRGÜN, ROKETSAN General Manager Murat İKİNCİ, and military personnel. With the command "Bismillah Fire at Will!" given by Admiral TATLIOĞLU, the AKYA War Torpedo, launched from 12,000 yards, hit the target ship with pinpoint accuracy. The Magnetic Proximity Sensor on the AKYA Next Generation National Heavyweight Torpedo (HWT) initiates a process that activates the warhead on the torpedo at a certain distance from the target. This allows AKYA to explode at a certain depth below the target ship's hull (about 5m-6m) rather than hitting the ship's hull directly. The resulting double-layered massive air bubble (called the "bubble jet effect") lifts the ship into the air from the middle, causing the ship's keel to split in half. Subsequently, the split ship sinks rapidly. The condition of the decommissioned fleet tug Gazal after the impact of the AKYA HWT was clearly seen in the video shared by the Ministry of National Defence.
The decision to start the Serial Production (both Training and Live Warhead versions) of the AKYA National Heavyweight Torpedo (HWT) was taken at the Defence Industry Executive Committee (SSİK) Meeting on December 20, 2022 (the Low Rate Initial Production [LRIP] started in 2021, and the first LRIP delivery (Training Torpedo version) was made in December 2021). This marks the first live firing tests conducted against a real surface target with a live torpedo under the AKYA National Heavyweight Torpedo Project, where more than 70 Controlled Test Firings and Guided Test Firings were carried out only with the Training Torpedo.
As remembered, the first firing test of AKYA HWT from a floating platform without a warhead and active/passive sonar was conducted on July 11, 2013. The first actual training firing test from a submarine was performed by the TCG Dolunay Submarine on January 15, 2020, in the Gulf of İzmit, and the first guided firing test against a floating target was conducted by the TCG Gür Submarine on January 20, 2021, using the AKYA Training Torpedo after a limited integration study. The mentioned guided firing test was executed from the torpedo tube using the Portable Firing Control System, a product of TÜBİTAK BİLGEM, without full integration into the ISUS 90-33 Combat Management System (CMS) on the submarine. The firing of the AKYA Training Torpedo from another submarine, the TCG Burakreis, was successfully conducted in the summer of 2022 also through the Portable Firing Control System. As with the PREVEZE Class Submarines, it was decided to provide the GÜR Class (Type 209/1400 Mod) Submarines in the Turkish Naval Forces inventory with the MÜREN-CMS and AKYA National Heavyweight Torpedo (HWT) capabilities. In this context, on December 5, 2022, signatures were exchanged between TÜBİTAK BİLGEM and the Turkish Naval Forces Command for the ADVENT-MÜREN Combat Management System (CMS) and AKYA HWT Integration Project for the GÜR Class Submarines. Additionally, on February 28, 2023, a contract was signed between TÜBİTAK BİLGEM and STM, assigning STM the responsibility for platform integration of the ADVENT-MÜREN CMS to be integrated into the GÜR Class Submarines.
Under the MÜREN-PREVEZE CMS Modernization Project carried out by the main contractor TÜBİTAK BİLGEM, the first guided firing test with the AKYA HWT was conducted using the TÜBİTAK BİLGEM product Firing Control System integrated into the CMS of the modernized TCG Preveze Submarine in the first half of March 2022. The first guided test firing against a real target (TCG Işın [A-583]), on the other hand, was conducted on March 21, 2022, in the Marmara Sea with the participation of the then Minister of National Defence, Hulusi AKAR. In these tests, the AKYA Training Torpedo (equipped with telemetry hardware instead of a warhead) and all guidance systems available in AKYA (passive contact, wake-homing guidance, manual guidance, and active contact) were successfully tested.
A contract was signed between TÜBİTAK BİLGEM and the Istanbul Naval Supply Group Command on November 29, 2021, to provide the AY Class TCG Doğanay (S-351) and TCG Dolunay (S-352) Submarines (which gained the capability to launch DM2A4 Heavyweight Torpedoes after modernization with the MÜREN CMS), with the AKYA National Heavyweight Torpedo (HWT) capability. As part of the contract, as of December 1, 2022, all test activities for the integration of the AKYA National HWT into the Firing Control System on the TCG Dolunay Submarine equipped with the MÜREN CMS were completed, and the relevant stage of the project was accepted. During the Sea Acceptance Test (SAT) phase, a firing test with the AKYA from the TCG Dolunay (S-352) Submarine was also conducted. Under the project, some electronic cards used in torpedo launch and operator interface software were updated, enabling both DM2A4 and AKYA Torpedoes to be fired and guided simultaneously.
Next Generation National Heavyweight Torpedo AKYA
The AKYA National Heavyweight Torpedo, which is stated to be designed with capabilities similar to the DM24A4 HWT (it can even be said to have better features, especially since Wake Homing guidance is included as standard equipment), possesses significantly superior features than expected. The Active/Passive Sonar Seeker is developed by METEKSAN Defence, the Processor and Guidance System are developed by ROKETSAN, and the Fiber Optic Cable is developed by Bilkent University UNAM (National Nanotechnology Research Center). Wake Homing Guidance, Measurement and Positioning System for Torpedo Test Area, and the Underwater Acoustic Models and Acoustic Signal Generators used for verifying the systems and software developed by KoçSavunma. Similar to the DM24A, two contra-rotating propellers, with 9 blades at the front and 7 blades at the rear, are also designed by a Turkish company.
AKYA, a remarkably fast and long-range Heavyweight Torpedo (HWT), is designed to be guided via fiber-optic cable from the moment of firing to impact. The torpedo does not have the feature to release the fiber-optic cable, but the thin cable may break due to various reasons. In such a case, the AKYA autonomously guides itself to the target using its onboard active/passive sonar system and Wake Homing. The main technological challenge is to enable the torpedo to autonomously locate and hit its target successfully even if the fiber-optic cable is severed.
As a game-changer in the HWT domain, according to ROKETSAN data, AKYA can reach a maximum speed of 45+ knots and a range of 50+ km. With the capability to stay in the sea for 60 minutes and the ability to re-engage, the torpedo can return to the target for a second attack if it misses the target in the first attempt. It is reinforced with high-energy chemical battery sets and has acoustic countermeasures (to increase resistance against acoustic decoys launched from the target ship or submarine). AKYA's parabolic nose structure, Compatible Sonar Array, and Wake Homing sensor support the claim that AKYA National Heavyweight Torpedo is primarily designed for surface targets. Although it is stated to have capabilities similar to those of the DM24A4 Heavyweight Torpedo, the sonar seeker section in AKYA has a different design from that of the DM2A4. However, it is claimed that the Active/Passive Sonar Seeker in AKYA can detect targets from longer distances compared to DM2A4.
