Turkish Navy Is Taking Part In Deniz Kurdu 2017

16 May 2017 4 Comments

On 13 May 2017 Turkish warships set sail to participate in annual Deniz Kurdu exercise.

The exercise is held in Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean Sea and will continue till 26 May 2017.

The purpose of the exercise is:

  • to test the efficiency level of the current command control structure under realistic conditions
  • to determine the functionality of the support provided to the other forces
  • to evaluate the to what extent the units of Turkish Naval Command can fulfill their duties and responsibilities  during the transition from a crisis environment to a conventional warfare environment.

14 frigates, 6 corvettes, 17 fast attack craft, 9 submarines, 6 mine hunters, 13 logistic support ships, 4 patrol boats, 4 MPA/ASW planes, 19 helicopters are taking part in this exercise. 9 boats and 1 SAR vessel from Turkish Coast Guard and numerous planes from Turkish Air Force is also taking part in this exercise.

The table below shows, the percentage of the participating Turkish Naval units, compared to the total ships in service.

In service Participating to DK 2017 %
Frigates 16 14 88%
Submarines 12 9 75%
Corvettes 8 6 75%
Fast Attack Craft 19 17 89%
Mine hunters 11 6 55%
Patrol boats 16 4 25%
Logistic support ships 5 13 260%
Planes 8 4 50%
Helicopters 35 19 54%

As one can see the majority of Turkish Naval units are taking part in Deniz Kurdu 2017.

The numbers for logistics supports ships does not make any sense. Turkish Navy has 5 replenishment ships that can be counted as logistics support ship. I have no idea how number for logistic ships was calculated as 13. As more news and photos start to be published we may learn more.

But other numbers are impressive and show that the majority of Turkish warships are, now at sea and honing their skills.

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NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 2 Conducts Training In Marmara Sea

1 Feb 2016

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Spanish mine hunter ESPS Tambre (left) and the Bulgarian mine sweeper BGS Shkval (right). Photo: SNMCMG-2

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The flagship of the task force TCG Cezayirli Gazi Hasanpaşa. Photo: SNMCMG-2

The task force has started its recent activities in Turkish naval base in Erdek, Balıkesir in early January. Erdek is the home port of the Turkish mine hunter ships. TCG Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Paşa replaced her sister TCG Sokullu Mehmet Paşa as the flagship of the task force. Following this change the task force sailed to the Aegean Sea to conduct a port visit in İzmir and some training activities in Saros Bay in Northern Aegean.

The ships of NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 2 passed through Çanakkale Strait on 27 January 2015 and entered Marmara Sea. Later in this month the task force will sail through Istanbul Strait and enter the Black Sea to participate in Bulgarian mine counter measures exercise Poseidon between 20 and 27 February 2016.

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More On Deniz Kurdu 13 Naval Exercise (Part 2)

31 May 2013

DENİZKURDU-13 tatbikatı

F-511 TCG Heybeliada firing her main 76mm gun. Photo: samanyoluhaber.com

Yesterday the Deniz Kurdu 2013 naval exercise has ended.
This is the list of the participants as far as I can find:

 Number Name Type
A-573 TCG Bnb. Saadettin Gürcan Tanker
A-580 TCG Akar Tanker
A-595 TCG Yrb. Kudret Güngör Tanker
F-241 TCG Turgutreis Frigate
F-243 TCG Yıldırım Frigate
F-244 TCG Barbaros Frigate
F-246 TCG Salihreis Frigate
F-247 TCG Kemalreis Frigate
F-494 TCG Gökçeada Frigate
F-495 TCG Gediz Frigate
F-511 TCG Heybeliada Corvette
P-335 TCG İmbat Fast Attack Boat
P-336 TCG Zıpkın Fast Attack Boat
P-337 TCG Atak Fast Attack Boat
P-346 TCG Gurbet Fast Attack Boat
P-347 TCG Fırtına Fast Attack Boat
P-349 TCG Karayel Fast Attack Boat
M-26X TCG- X Mine Hunter
akar

Naval special forces fast roping to TCG Akar. Photo: dunya.com

The naval special forces demonstrated how to infiltrate into a ship and capture it on board of the replenishment tanker A-580 TCG Akar. This is a much needed exercise considering that there is always a special forces team on board of the Turkish frigates conducting anti piracy operations in Gulf Of Aden.

Click here for the full set of photos from the infiltration exercise.

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More On Deniz Kurdu 13 Naval Exercise

28 May 2013 1 Comment

The naval exercise Deniz Kurdu 13 is continuing.

This is the list of the participants as far as I can find:

 Number Name Type
A-573 TCG Bnb. Saadettin Gürcan Tanker
A-595 TCG Yrb. Kudret Güngör Tanker
F-243 TCG Yıldırım Frigate
F-246 TCG Salihreis Frigate
F-247 TCG Kemalreis Frigate
F-494 TCG Gökçeada Frigate
F-495 TCG Gediz Frigate
F-511 TCG Heybeliada Corvette
P-335 TCG İmbat Fast Attack Boat
P-336 TCG Zıpkın Fast Attack Boat
P-337 TCG Atak Fast Attack Boat
P-346 TCG Gurbet Fast Attack Boat
P-347 TCG Fırtına Fast Attack Boat
P-349 TCG Karayel Fast Attack Boat
M-26X TCG- X Mine Hunter

Some interesting photos from the exercise:

(1)

(4)

(6)

DENİZKURDU-13 Fiili Deniz Tatbikatı

DENİZKURDU-13 Fiili Deniz Tatbikatı

denizkurdu5

denizkurdu6

For more photos click here and here.

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Deniz Kurdu 2013 Naval Exercise Has Started

21 May 2013

The largest annual exercise of the Turkish Navy Deniz Kurdu has started on 20 May 2013. Vice Admiral Bülent Bostanoğlu, Commander of the Fleet is in charge of the exercise.

The participating ships left their port in Gölcük, Foça and Aksaz. The exercise will be conducted in the Marmara, the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean. 

According to Akşam newspaper F-243 TCG Yıldırım, F-244 TCG Barbaros, F-246 TCG Salihreis and F-511 TCG Heybeliada are taking part in the exercise.

The exercise will end on 3 June 2013.  Click here for the official announcement.

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USNS Grasp Returns To The Black Sea

18 Jun 2012 4 Comments

The position and the course of USNS Grasp as I wrote this post.

I had reported about the port visit of the Safeguard class salvage ship of the US Military Sealift Command T-ARS-51 USNS Grasp in Istanbul last week.

I had the impression that after leaving Istanbul USNS Grasp would be heading to the Mediterranean as had spent at least 14 days in the Black Sea where she took part in Eurasia Partnership (EP) Dive 2012.

But I was wrong.

USNS Grasp re-entering the Black Sea on 16th June 2012

She made a large U-turn in the Marmara Sea after leaving Istanbul and crossed through the Bosphorus again northbound on 16th June 2012.She seems to be heading to Odessa this time.

The Black Sea News website has an extended coverage of the latest activities of USNS Grasp in the Black Sea.

I was not able to take photos of this ship when she was in Istanbul. May be I get lucky and can take photos of her, when she passes again through Bosphorus, leaving the Black Sea.

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Two Turkish Warships Collided During Training

28 Mar 2012 1 Comment

P-338 TCG Bora. Ten days ago in Dardanelles.

Today two Turkish patrol boats P-337 TCG Atak and P-338 TCG Bora collided in Marmara Sea. Both boats are afloat but 8 sailors have been injured.

Neither Turkish Navy nor the Turkish General Staff made any public announcements about the accident therefore all information including the names of the boats are yet to be officially verified.

According to news reports the two ships were conducting a training in Marmara Sea before the upcoming yearly major naval exercise Deniz Kurdu2012.

The accident happened when two boats are maneuvering in high speed alongside. 8 sailors have been injured during the collision. The injured were brought to Istanbul on fast intervention craft of Turkish Coast Guard and were taken to a military hospital.

P-337 TCG Atak. Last year in Dardanelles.

The content of the damage to the ships are not know yet, but I do not think that the damage it extensive.

Here is a short video taken as the injured sailors are transferred from coast guard boat to the ambulances.

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M/V Kartepe hijacked in Marmara Sea

11 Nov 2011 3 Comments

M/V Kartepe, a high speed passenger vessel belonging to the municipality of Izmit was hijacked by 4 or 5 terrorist this evening as the vessel was on her routine voyage from Izmit to Karamursel.

According to news reports there are 19 passengers, 6 crew. The terrorist overwhelmed the crew and entered into the bridge by saying that bombs are strapped to their bodies.

Currently, I as write this, the vessel is moving in Marmara Sea without a particular heading. The remaining fuel can last 120 nautical miles. The terrorists did not contact any authorities for any demands yet.

An unidentified number of Turkish Coast Guard vessels some salvage and rescue ships and most probably teams of Turkish naval special forces are shadowing the hijacked vessel.

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