Pakistan Proceeds With New Miniature Submarine
The Pakistan Ministry of Defence Production (MoDP) listed the development and construction of a miniature submarine as a target for 2016-2017.
This may be related to talks in 2016 between the Pakistan Navy and the Turkish defence vendor Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik ve Ticaret A.Ş. (STM) for the joint development of a mini-submarine to supplant the Pakistan Navy’s aging Cosmos MG110 (SX756/W) mini-submarines.
The Cosmos MG110 displaces 119 tons submerged. It can carry eight special operation forces (SOF) divers and two swimmer delivery vehicles (SDV). The MG110s were bought in the 1980s to replace the SX404 mini-submarines.
According to MSI Turkish Defence Review, Pakistan and STM had studied the feasibility of upgrading the MG110s, but both sides concluded that this was not an affordable route.
Subsequently, STM proposed “designing a submarine platform from scratch,” which – if inked – would be considered a “different and strategic” collaborative effort between the two countries.
Turkish shipbuilder Yonca-Onuk is proposing its Underwater Offensive Team boat.