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The Turkish Navy's Dogan-class patrol boat TCG Volkan officially joined the Maldives National Defense Force fleet on Friday following a commissioning ceremony attended by Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu and senior Turkish military officials.
The TCG Volkan (P-343), donated as part of defense industry cooperation between the two nations, completed its transfer journey from Türkiye to the Maldives between July 1 and Aug. 7, according to Türkiye's Ministry of National Defense.
The vessel arrived at Male Port on Aug. 10, where a Turkish flag-lowering ceremony was conducted with the presence of Türkiye's military attaché accredited to New Delhi and the Maldives Defense Ministry's Director General of International Defense Cooperation and Procurement.
The formal commissioning ceremony took place Aug. 15, with Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu presiding over the event alongside high-level state officials, Turkish Ambassador to Colombo Semih Lutfu Turgut, and Turkish Navy Commander Admiral Kadir Yildiz.
"Within the framework of defense industry cooperation, the donated TCG Volkan vessel's transfer to the Maldives began on July 1, 2025, and was successfully completed on Aug. 7, 2025," the Turkish Ministry of National Defense stated on its social media account.
The TCG Volkan, originally commissioned into the Turkish Navy in May 1981 and reclassified as a test and training vessel in 2024, represents a significant addition to the Maldives' naval capabilities.
The Dogan-class vessel features
The patrol boat comes equipped with substantial firepower and defensive capabilities:
The Dogan-class vessels, designed by German shipbuilder Lurssen Werft, marked a significant advancement in Türkiye's naval capabilities in the late 20th century as the first Turkish naval class equipped with Harpoon anti-ship missiles.
The class originally included four boats: TCG Dogan (P-340), TCG Marti (P-341, decommissioned in 2022), TCG Tayfun (P-342), and TCG Volkan (P-343, donated to the Maldives).
Powered by four MTU diesel engines producing 12,000 horsepower, the vessel has a beam of 7.62 meters and a draft of 2.74 meters, making it suitable for both coastal patrol and blue-water operations.
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