} ''ULAQ'' is the prototype of the first Turkish armed

unmanned surface vessel Unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), also known as unmanned surface vessels, autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs) in some cases, uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), or colloquially drone ships, or robot boats, are boats or ships that operate on the ...

(AUSV).

Background

''ULAQ'', a derivation of tr, ulak for government official

envoy Envoy or Envoys may refer to: Diplomacy * Diplomacy, in general * Envoy (title) * Special envoy, a type of diplomatic rank Brands *Airspeed Envoy, a 1930s British light transport aircraft *Envoy (automobile), an automobile brand used to sell Bri ...

, is the first of a series of AUSVs of Turkey, which was developed for the Turkish Navy by

Ares Shipyard Ares Shipyard ( tr, Ares Tersanesi) is a Turkish shipyard established in Antalya, southern Turkey in 2006. It builds fast patrol boats for the defence and law enforcement missions. This Shipyard Made World Class 'Ares-150 Hercules' OPV. Whice was ...

and Meteksan Defense Systems. The design studies completed by August 2020, and the prototype was launched on 12 February 2021 in

Antalya Antalya () is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, fifth-most populous city in Turkey as well as the capital of Antalya Province. Located on Anatolia's southwest coast bordered by the Taurus Mountains, Antalya is the largest Turkish cit ...

. It was planned that firing tests with guided missiles of

Roketsan Roketsan Roket Sanayii ve Ticaret A.S. is a major Turkish weapons manufacturer and defense contractor based in Ankara, Turkey. Incorporated in 1988 by Turkey's Defense Industry Executive Committee (''SSİK'') to establish the nation's industri ...

would be carried out by March 2021. On 25 May 2021, the vessel successfully completed its first firing test. The Roketsan Cirit missile fired from the vessel destroyed the target with pinpoint accuracy.

Characteristics

The vessel can be deployed from combat ships. She can be controlled remotely from mobile vehicles, headquarters, command centers and floating platforms. It serves in missions such as reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence, surface warfare, asymmetric warfare, armed escort and force protection, and strategic facility security. It is planned that the vessel will operate jointly with other AUSVs, armed UAVs and aircraft, and instantly transmit images and other data she obtains to provide major benefits to the operational capability of the

Turkish Armed Forces The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF; tr, Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri, TSK) are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. Turkish Armed Forces consist of the General Staff, the Land Forces, the Naval Forces and the Air Forces. The current Chi ...

. The ULAQ AUSV will come in 6 different variants each with its own type of mission and armament Made of advanced composite material, the boat is long and has a payload capacity of . She has a range of and a cruise speed of . She is operable at rough sea (

sea state In oceanography, sea state is the general condition of the free surface on a large body of water—with respect to wind waves and swell—at a certain location and moment. A sea state is characterized by statistics, including the wave height, p ...

5: wave height). She has indigenous encrypted communications and day/night vision capabilities. She is resistant to electronic warfare and is equipped with an Anti GPS jammer device.

Armament:

ULAQ Surface Combat: 4x L-UMTAS missiles or 2x L-UMTAS & 2x CIRIT missile. ULAQ anti-ship: 4x ATMACA anti-ship missiles ULAQ ISR & EW (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance / Electronical Warfare): Unarmed ULAQ ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare): 2x ORKA Lightweight torpedo + 12 sonobuoy ULAQ FiFi (Firefighting vehicle): ULAQ MCMV (Mine Counter-Measures Vessel): ''ULAQ'' bears similarities to the Fleet-class common USV of

Textron Systems Textron Inc. is an American industrial conglomerate based in Providence, Rhode Island. Textron's subsidiaries include Arctic Cat, Bell Textron, Textron Aviation (which itself includes the Beechcraft, and Cessna brands), and Lycoming Engines. ...

, USA and the

Protector USV The Protector unmanned surface vehicle (USV) was developed by the Israeli Rafael Advanced Defense Systems in response to emerging terrorist threats against maritime assets such as the USS Cole bombing, USS ''Cole'' bombing, and is the first operat ...

Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. ( he, רפאל - מערכות לחימה מתקדמות בע"מ, formerly Rafael Armament Development Authority), ("Rafael" from Hebrew acronym of "Authority for the Development of Armaments" - ) is an Israel ...

, Israel.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite news , url=https://www.aa.com.tr/en/science-technology/turkey-unveils-armed-unmanned-surface-vessel-prototype/2077675 , newspaper=

Anadolu Agency Anadolu Agency ( tr, Anadolu Ajansı, ; abbreviated AA) is a state-run news agency headquartered in Ankara, Turkey. History The Anadolu Agency was founded in 1920 during the Turkish War of Independence by the order of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. As ...

, title=Turkey unveils armed unmanned surface vessel prototype , author1=Özdemir Tosun, Hatice , author2=Süleyman Elçin , date=15 December 2020 , access-date=12 February 2021 {{cite news , url=https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/turkiyenin-ilk-silahli-deniz-araci-ulaq-suya-indirildi-41738707 , newspaper=

Hürriyet ''Hürriyet'' (, ''Liberty'') is one of the major Turkish newspapers, founded in 1948. , it had the highest circulation of any newspaper in Turkey at around 319,000. ''Hürriyet'' has a mainstream, liberal and conservative outlook. ''Hürriyet ...

, title=Türkiye'nin ilk silahlı deniz aracı ULAQ suya indirildi , date=12 February 2021 , language=tr , access-date=12 February 2021 {{cite news , url=https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ekonomi/dunyada-bir-ornegi-daha-yok-41689277 , newspaper=

, title=Dünyada bir örneği daha yok! , date=15 December 2020 , language=tr , access-date=16 February 2021 {{cite web , url=https://www.meteksan.com/tr/haberler/turkiyenin-ilk-silahli-insansiz-deniz-araci-ulaq-mavi-vatanin-yeni-muhafizi-olacak , publisher=

Meteksan Savunma Meteksan Savunma is a Turkish defense technology company, based in Ankara specializing in radar systems, perimeter surveillance systems, laser and electro-optic systems, communication systems, underwater acoustic systems and simulators. It is part ...

, title=Türkiye'nin İlk Silahlı İnsansız Deniz Aracı "ULAQ" Mavi Vatanın Yeni Muhafızı Olacak , date=28 October 2020 , language=tr , access-date=13 February 2021 {{cite news , url=https://www.trthaber.com/haber/gundem/yerli-sida-mavi-vatanda-yeni-bir-donem-baslatacak-526943.html , newspaper=

TRT Haber TRT Haber (English: TRT News) is a Turkish news and current affairs television channel. See also * List of television stations in Turkey The television industry in Turkey includes high-tech program production, transmission and coverage. T ...

, title=Yerli SİDA Mavi Vatan'da yeni bir dönem başlatacak , author=Aksan, Sertaç , date=29 October 2020 , language=tr , access-date=13 February 2021 {{cite web , url=https://mavivatan.net/mavi-vatanin-insansiz-muhafizi-ulaq/ , publisher=Mavi Vatan , title=Mavi Vatan'ın İnsansız Muhafızı ULAQ , date=31 October 2020 , language=tr , access-date=13 February 2021 {{cite news , url=https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/turkish-shipbuilder-develops-new-armed-unmanned-surface-vessel , newspaper=The Maritime Executive , title=Turkish Shipbuilder Develops New Armed, Unmanned Surface Vessel , date=29 October 2020 , access-date=13 February 2021 2021 ships Ships built in Antalya Naval ships of Turkey Unmanned surface vehicles