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Türkiye launched its eighth MILGEM-class frigate TCG Icel (F-518) at Sefine Shipyard on Monday, marking another milestone in the nation's expanding naval capabilities with a vessel featuring 80% domestic production, including radar systems, sonar equipment and anti-ship missiles.
The 113-meter frigate, part of the MILGEM 6-12 I-class Frigate Procurement Project, represents Türkiye's growing self-sufficiency in naval defense manufacturing.
The vessel can conduct surveillance, reconnaissance, patrol, anti-submarine warfare, surface defense warfare, air defense warfare and naval air operations in all weather conditions up to sea state 5.
"We are implementing all platforms needed by the Turkish Naval Forces intensively. We are doing something that only a few countries in the world can do. More than 30 military ships are being built simultaneously in all our military and civilian shipyards," said Mustafa Murat Seker, deputy chairman of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB), during the launch ceremony.
The TCG Icel, displacing approximately 3,200 tons, features a gas turbine and diesel engine combination capable of reaching speeds exceeding 29 knots.
The frigate can operate in the Black Sea, Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean, conducting helicopter operations even in sea state 4 conditions.
The vessel incorporates Turkish-developed weapons and systems, including:
Construction of the TCG Icel began on June 15, 2023, with steel cutting at Sefine Shipyard.
The vessel is the fourth I-class frigate and eighth ship in the overall MILGEM project. Seven I-class frigates are currently under simultaneous construction at three Turkish shipyards—Anadolu, Sedef and Sefine.
"With MILGEM, we built not just a platform but an ecosystem," Seker noted, highlighting that the first MILGEM was delivered with over 65% domestic content, a figure that has increased with each subsequent vessel.
Demir Kologlu, chairman and board member of Sefine Shipyard, emphasized that more than 200 supplier companies contributed to TCG Icel's construction, with over 74% of domestic contributions coming from sub-industries and small-to-medium enterprises.
SSB officials announced plans for additional naval programs, including the TF-2000 air defense destroyer project, with contracts expected to be signed this year.
The first TF-2000 vessel will be built at a military shipyard, with serial production planned at private shipyards.
Türkiye is also advancing its unmanned naval systems program. "We want to transfer our success in unmanned aerial vehicles to unmanned naval vehicles, unmanned submarines and unmanned land vehicles," Seker stated, noting that four shipyards are developing four different unmanned naval vessels.
SSB head Haluk Gorgun described the frigate launch as a symbol of Türkiye's maritime confidence in the Republic's second century.
"Every new ship rising on the vast horizons of the 'Blue Homeland' declares not only our security but also our engineering prowess and independence will to the whole world," Gorgun said.
The TCG Icel will undergo various testing processes, with the complete launch operation expected to finish within 24 hours. Following this batch, four additional ships—TCG Akdeniz (F-519), TCG Karadeniz (F-520), TCG Ege (F-521) and TCG Marmara (F-522)—will be constructed.
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