Developing innovative and national solutions in line with Türkiye’s goal of establishing a fully independent defence industry, STM Savunma Teknolojileri Mühendislik ve Ticaret A.Ş. took another critical step in its nationalisation efforts aimed at naval platforms.
The Helicopter Visual Landing Aid System (HVLAS), which is used on surface warships and has been supplied from abroad until now, is being produced in Türkiye thanks to STM’s indigenisation efforts.
HVLAS has been developed jointly by STM and Berkin Defence Engineering, and it can be used on all domestic naval surface platforms, including those developed under the MiLGEM National Corvette Project. STM will integrate the HVLAS aboard two corvettes, which are being constructed under an ongoing export project. Thus, Türkiye will achieve the first export of the HVLAS, developed for the first time by a domestic company using national resources.
Consisting of visual guidance and flight deck lighting equipment and comprising pieces of software that ensure system equipment to operate in an appropriate configuration, having been developed by indigenous and national means, HVLAS enables helicopter pilots to landing with safely on ships during both day and night operations. HVLAS allows pilots to operate safely at night and at times when visibility is not convenient, minimising the workload of pilots. HVLAS can be used aboard all naval surface platforms, including corvettes, frigates, logistics support ships, or tanker ships with helicopter platforms.
Özgür GÜLERYÜZ, General Manager of STM, stating that STM had achieved many pioneering naval platform projects in Türkiye, from design to turnkey projects, said: “We nationalise not only the construction of our ships but also the critical systems used aboard the platforms, thanks to our strong local ecosystem. The HVLAS, which allows helicopters to land safely on ships, was previously supplied from abroad as it was not produced in Türkiye. We have developed the HVLAS together with Berkin Defence and thus introduced an indigenous and national product in this field for the first time in Türkiye.”
“Our HVLAS is capable of competing with equivalent products around the world since it makes the work of helicopter pilots easier, allows quick manoeuvres in field operations, and has a progressive and modern structure. It also allows us to further increase the indigenisation rate of the ships that we construct for the Turkish Naval Forces or our export projects. We are currently integrating the HVLAS aboard two corvettes being constructed under an export project. Then we plan to equip our national frigate project, MiLGEM 6-7-8, with this national system,” he added.
“The development of HVLAS allowed us to not only acquire cutting-edge technology capability but simultaneously prevent the drainage of foreign currency from our nation while also bolstering our exports through a high-value-added product. We will consistently share good news about our achievements in naval platforms indigenization,” he concluded.
STM has been serving the Turkish defence sector for over a quarter of a century in such areas as engineering, technology and consultancy, working in fields that are critical for Türkiye and its allies. It applies its advanced capabilities and technologies to a broad range of strategic fields, ranging from naval platforms to tactical mini UAV systems, from satellite works to cybersecurity, and from big data analytics to artificial intelligence applications.
