Royal Navy Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset following her massive overhaul known as LIFEX (life extension). UK MOD
Opinion: Should Turkiye Buy Type 23 Frigates?
A local Turkish defense media outlet was the first to report the claims, stating that the Turkish Ministry of Defense (MoD) had reached an agreement with the UK to procure the aging Type 23 frigates. The new came as a surprise to many naval observers and commentators. Mainly because the Turkish shipbuilding industry is in its golden age and follows an indigenous trend.
According to Turkish MoD sources, they are just considering whether such a procurement would be beneficial or not, but there is no agreement between the two countries yet. If the Turkish government decides to buy Type 23 frigates as a short-term interim solution for the Turkish Navy’s frigate needs, sources say that four frigates could be purchased.
Middle East Eye (MEE) also claimed that a possible Type 23 deal would be part of a larger cooperation contract between Turkiye and the UK. “
According to three separate sources familiar with the discussions, Turkiye has held talks with the United Kingdom about the possible sale of a large arms deal, including fighter jets, transport planes, engines, and frigates.” said the Turkiye Bureau Chief of the MEE. The MEE also underlined that its sources said that Turkey is in need of frigates that have air defense capabilities as it will soon retire its G-class (Perry) frigates that are over 40 years old.
According to the outlet, the two countries’ defense ministers met and discussed options for
a large weapon procurement deal that would include Eurofighter jets, C-130J transport planes, Type 23 frigates, and engines for Turkey’s outdated M60 battle tanks. In this case, each Type 23 frigate would cost between 25 and 30 million pounds.
Author’s opinion
Claims of the MEE
To begin with, the claims of the Middle East Eye’s exclusive article in the matter would not be incorrect to say that the reasons given by the media outlet’s sources do not accurately reflect the situation, because the sources only considered the ships’ age, and Type 23 frigates are not a suitable replacement for Turkish G-class frigates.
Though G-class frigates are relatively older, they have been upgraded with the GENESIS combat management system, and their CICs (Combat Information Center) are quite modern when compared to other OHP frigates around the world. They also had some sensor and weapon modernizations, such as replacing the aging SPS-49 air radar with the Smart-S Mk2, adding Mk 41 VLS to some of them, and other sensor upgrades. As far as I know, the Turkish Navy has no plans to retire those ships because they have invested heavily in them and they are still operationally effective.
On the other hand, Type 23 frigates’ primary mission is ASW (Anti Submarine Warfare), while G-class is primarily considered as AAW (Anti Air Warfare) frigates. The range of Type 23s SAMs is shorter than OHPs’ SM-1, which can hit targets at 50 kilometers, and four of the Turkish OHPs are armed with ESSM missiles as well.
Pros and Cons of such a procurement
Though there is an interest from the Turkish side to purchase
Type 23 frigates from the UK, many navy veterans and navy professionals in the country objects to buying such old ships. As mentioned above, the Turkish shipbuilding industry is its golden age, and capable to build warships with an indigenization rate of 80-85%.
Type 23 frigates have a proven track record, particularly in anti-submarine warfare. They took part in a variety of combat missions and operations, including the Gulf War. If they can be kept operationally ready, they will help the Turkish Navy, which urgently needs to expand its fleet. Because the Turkish Navy is an operational navy with multiple missions at the same time, a task group will be required to protect the future flagship, TCG Anadolu. This ambitious LHD project, which is expected to conduct overseas missions, will require combatants to protect it. This will increase the demand for frigates even more than before.
On the contrary, it is unclear whether Type 23 frigates are the best option for fleet expansion. There are no British-made ships in the Turkish Navy because its backbone is made up of US-made (OHP), German-made (MEKO), and indigenously made (MILGEM) ships. As a result, the logistic system is not familiar to the British systems. Although 25-30 million pounds is a low price for a frigate, the maintenance costs of these aging ships may rise unexpectedly. This will be a critical issue when the Type 23s have a defect in any system, and the duration of repair might be longer than expected. It will not be easy to maintain these ships operational-ready.
Turkiye, which previously experienced outsourcing issues as a result of the covered sanctions, may face some challenges in repairing potential defects on these ships on time. This was the primary motivation for the Turkish Defense Industry’s indigenous trend. Because in the past, the repair of ship malfunctions took a long time because spare parts were expected to arrive from abroad, causing the ships to remain inactive. However, the indigenous trend has solved this problem, and malfunctions are resolved quickly, ensuring that the ships are ready for operation.
Of course, it’s unknown how much money the Turkish MoD has set aside for such a possible purchase, but investing more in I-class frigates may be a better option for Turkiye. Because the future
TCG Istanbul, the lead ship of the I-class frigate project, was launched last year, and the indigenous frigate is expected to enter service in 2023. Completing the prototype of a new type of ship is always a challenge for countries when building a new type of ship. TCG Istanbul is almost finished, and the most difficult part of the project is over.
The remaining three ships will be built by private shipyards through the STM-TAIS partnership, and allocating the budget of Type 23s to this project may speed up the process and allow these three frigates to be completed sooner than expected.
Turkish media reported last week that the Turkish Ministry of Defense is in talks with its British counterparts regarding the procurement of Type 23 frigates.
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