IDEX 2025 – Turkey unveils Marlin USV in monohull and trimaran configuration

Unmanned surface vehicle (USV) programmes in the past years have focused primarily on developing unmanned naval platforms for unarmed missions, such as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and mine-countermeasures missions. More ambitious projects have included armed USVs, but mostly for defensive missions. The Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the fighting in the Black Sea theatre have shown that, just as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) began as reconnaissance aerial platforms but later became low-cost strike drones, a similar transformation has occurred in the area of ​​unmanned naval vehicles

Future wars may see increased combat use of armed USVs, especially operations conducted swarms of these types of vehicles. Individually, they may pose only a limited threat, but their low cost and the risks of use will likely mean that they may become a permanent threat. It is possible that these devices, similar to UAVs, will shape the scenarios of future military conflicts in the near future.

The lessons of the combat use of Ukrainian USVs in the Black Sea theatre of operations are carefully studied by Western experts and based on the results of analytical studies, decisions are taken to make certain adjustments to the development plans of their nations fleets. The Turkish Navy is no exception, therefore the Turkish defence industry is creating a whole family of combat USVs. Currently, Turkish specialists are developing several variants of combat USVs, which are actively promoted on the world market.

In particular at NAVDEX 2025, the Turkish TAIS Shipyards, together with Aselsan, presented the Marlin unmanned surface vehicle, which can be manufactured both as a monohull vessel and as a trimaran. As a representative of TAIS Shipyards told EDR On-Line, the company manufactures the UAV hull and integrates equipment and weapons supplied by Aselsan and Roketsan. The TAIS Shipyards and Aselsan booths presented models of the Marlin USV with a trimaran hull.

According to the information presented at the TAIS Shipyards booth, the Marlin USV in the monohull version has a displacement of 21.5 tonnes, a payload of over 4 tonnes, a length of 15 metres, a width of 3.85 metres, a draft of 0.82 metres, a speed of 36 knots, a cruising range of 1,000 nautical miles, and an endurance of 4-7 days. The boat can perform combat missions in sea conditions up to State 5 and is controlled by one operator. The trimaran version of the Marlin USV has a displacement of 23.5 tonnes, a payload of over 4 tonnes, a length of 15 metres, a width of 7.7 metres, a draft of 0.85 metres, a speed of 24 knots, a cruising range of 1,000 nautical miles, and an endurance of 4-7 days.

The power plant of both USVs is based on two diesel engines that activate two water jets. The navigation system includes radar, magnetic compass, gyro compass, GPS satellite positioning system receiver, echosounder, EM log and an automatic identification system (AIS).

The communication system includes broadband and narrowband satellite communication systems, RF communication and 4G/LTE communication.

The weapons systems of the Marlin USV differ depending on the type. The monohull version of can be equipped with various combat modules depending on the tasks to be performed. The armament may include 20 Kuzgun and 8 CIRIT surface-to-surface (SSM), 4 L-UMTAS SSMs, 4 torpedoes and a bow remote-controlled weapon system (RCWS) with a 12.7 mm machine gun.

In a heavier version, the Marlin USV trimaran, depending on the tasks to be performed, may be equipped with 40 Kuzgun and 16 CIRIT SSMs, 8 L-UMTAS SSMs, 8 torpedoes and a bow RCWS with a 12.7 mm machine gun. The ship’s electronic warfare system may include the ARES 2NC ESM and AREAS 2NC ECM suites.

The Marlin USV is fitted with various equipment, including an active stabilization system, an anti-jam GNSS satellite navigation system, an obstacle avoidance sonar, an KIRLANGIC EO/IR camera, and an ANS510-D inertial navigation system.

As reported to EDR On-Line by TAIS Shipyards, the Marlin USV can be used to perform various combat missions, including anti-surface warfare (AuSW), anti-submarine warfare (ASW), amphibious operations, electronic warfare (EW), engage with SSMs surface and shore targets, engage asymmetric threats, and cooperate with UAVs for targeting. Currently, the Turkish Navy operates one Marlin USV in the single-hull version.

Photos by N. Novichkov