“We Want to be Number One Globally in Naval Projects”

STM General Manager Özgür Güleryüz

In recent years, Turkish defence company STM has seen its global footprint grow significantly, but Özgür Güleryüz, company General Manager, has bigger goals in mind.

“We have the ambition to become the number one company globally in naval projects,” Güleryüz tells Arun Sivasankaran in an interview. “We were listed in the Defence News Top 100, which ranks the world’s largest defence companies, for three consecutive years in 2018, 2019, and 2020. Our primary goal is to re-enter this list and rank even higher. More than 50% of our revenue comes from exports, and our aim is to further increase this percentage. In the long term, we aspire to be among the world’s top 50 defence companies.

“By the end of the decade, we envision STM as a leading global player in defence and engineering, recognized for its advanced technologies, innovative solutions, and significant contributions to both national and international defence sectors,” says Güleryüz. “We aim to further strengthen our position in naval platforms, unmanned systems, and cybersecurity, expanding our export footprint in key markets such as the Asia-Pacific, the Gulf region, Africa, and Europe.”

Edited excerpts from the interview:

What are some of the company’s ongoing naval programs?

We have a busy schedule in the field of naval projects. We have delivered the first ship of the I-Class Frigates, TCG İSTANBUL, and the construction of the subsequent ships, numbers 6 to 12, is ongoing. Meanwhile, the modernization processes of the Preveze and Gür Class submarines, which are in the inventory of the Turkish Navy, are progressing successfully.

In addition, the construction of two corvettes based on the Ada Class for the Ukrainian Navy is continuing in Türkiye, and we plan to deliver the first ship soon. In 2024, we signed a contract to build three corvettes (LMS Batch-2) for the Royal Malaysian Navy. This marks Türkiye’s first corvette export to the Asia-Pacific region. We are also closely following potential naval shipbuilding projects from different parts of the world.

STM was the designer and main contractor of Türkiye’s first national frigate TCG İSTANBUL. Could you provide an update on the construction of the sixth, seventh, and eighth ships in the MiLGEM programme? What is the timeline?

As the main subcontractor, we played a key role in the delivery of Türkiye's first national corvette project, MİLGEM, with four Ada Class Corvettes actively used by the Turkish Navy. We are also the main contractor and designer of Türkiye's first national frigate, TCG İSTANBUL, the first ship of the I-Class Frigate Project, which is a continuation of the MİLGEM Ada Class Corvettes.

In TCG İSTANBUL, we succeeded in exceeding our targeted 75% localization rate, reaching 80%. In continuation of TCG İSTANBUL, it was decided that the three additional frigates under the MİLGEM I-Class Frigate Procurement Project would be constructed by STM partnership with the TAIS Joint Venture (TAIS JV). We aim to deliver these three national frigates within 36 months (by 2026). The construction of these ships is progressing successfully, and we will soon hold their launch ceremonies.

At the beginning of 2024, the Defence Industry Executive Committee (SSİK) decided to proceed with the construction of the 9th to 12th MİLGEM ships. The construction of these ships is also carried out in partnership with STM-TAİS.

The I-Class Frigates, with all their sensors and weapon systems developed nationally, will also be equipped with national air defence capabilities. National solutions such as the Gökdeniz close-in weapon system, Cenk-S 3D search radar, Akrep fire control radar, illumination radar, torpedo tubes, MİDLAS National Vertical Launching System, and Hisar-D will be featured in all three ships.

How successful has the company been in improving its global footprint?

The naval projects in which we have been involved and the tactical mini-UAV systems and cybersecurity solutions we have delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces, which is the second largest army in NATO, have brought us significant engineering experience, and we have shared this experience with friendly and allied nations over the years. We are engaged in collaborations, export and business development activities in more than 30 countries, from South America to the Far East.

We are currently carrying out joint studies in various projects in Asia, particularly with the Turkic Republics and Pakistan. We consider that Türkiye has many friendly and allied nations in the Asia-Pacific region with which we have common ties. We have intensive business development activities, particularly in the Asia-Pacific, Gulf region, Africa, South America, and Central Asia. In line with this, we participate in international defence exhibitions to showcase our technologies. We aim to enhance our presence in Europe and the Americas, particularly with NATO; through our solutions and expertise in command and control, decision support systems, and simulation.

STM is known globally for its naval programs. Can you tell us more about some of your areas of operation?

Although STM’s main area of focus is naval projects, we are also involved in critical projects in the fields of tactical mini-UAV systems, command and control, cybersecurity, and information systems. After naval projects, our second focus area is tactical mini-UAV systems.

During Türkiye's operations against the PKK terrorist organization in 2015-2016, the close-quarters combat and need for pinpoint targeting revealed the necessity for tactical-level smart UAVs with artificial intelligence. At that time, no solution in Türkiye had reached maturity in this area, and these systems were urgently sought from abroad. However, foreign manufacturers were reluctant to sell such products to Türkiye.

STM entered this field to create solutions with its engineering capabilities. In 2017, at the IDEF exhibition, STM introduced three members of its Tactical Mini UAV Family: the rotary-wing surveillance UAV TOGAN, the smart loitering munition ALPAGU, and the rotary-wing attack (Loitering Munition) UAV KARGU. We developed Türkiye's first loitering UAV, KARGU, which entered the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) in 2018. KARGU has been exported to over 10 countries across three continents. To date, more than 5,000 KARGU have been produced.

The ALPAGU Fixed Wing Loitering Munition System stands out for its lightweight structure, dive speed, low radar cross-section, and ability to create pinpoint damage on critical targets. Weighing less than 2 kilograms, there are only two similar platforms in the world. ALPAGU completed its live ammunition test shots in 2021 and achieved its first export in 2023. Efforts are ongoing to include ALPAGU in the TAF inventory.

The TOGAN, Multi-Rotor UAS for Tactical Surveillance and Reconnaissance, the reconnaissance member of the family, is used in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations. A single TOGAN platform can operate for 45 minutes within a 10-kilometer range. Entering the TAF inventory in 2022, TOGAN was exported to two African countries in 2024.

One of the newest members of the family, the BOYGA, Ammunition Drop UAV, entered the TAF inventory in 2022 and has actively participated in counter-terrorism, cross-border operations, and international exercises.

The ALPAGUT smart loitering munition system was introduced for the first time at SAHA EXPO-2022. Developed in partnership with Roketsan, ALPAGUT can operate day or night, and is effective against mobile or stationary land and sea targets, radar and communication systems, critical facilities, personnel and targets of opportunity. The development and field testing of this system are ongoing.