Denizkurdu-I/2026 Exercise Continues with 14 Thousand Personnel

Denizkurdu-I/2026 Exercise Continues with 14 Thousand Personnel

Turkish Armed Forces' Denizkurdu-I/2026 Exercise continues with the participation of 100 ships, 50 air elements and approximately 14 thousand personnel.

Exercise Denizkurdu-I/2026, planned by the Turkish Naval Forces Command, continues with the Distinguished Observer Day in the Eastern Mediterranean, following the activities that started on September 20. In addition to the Naval Forces Command, elements of the Land Forces Command, Air Force Command and Coast Guard Command are participating in the exercise.

Approximately 14 thousand personnel, 100 ships and 50 aircraft are on duty within the scope of the exercise. Activities are carried out in the Black Sea, Marmara Sea, Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean. In the official announcement of the Ministry of National Defense dated September 18, it was stated that the exercise would be carried out simultaneously in these four sea regions between September 20-25.

What is the purpose of the exercise?

Denizkurdu-I/2026 was not planned as an activity where only the weapons and maneuvering capabilities of naval elements were tested. Among the important objectives of the exercise are the development of decision-making, judgment and foresight capabilities in a very threatening environment.

According to the statement of the Ministry of National Defense, the activities aim to evaluate the operational management and management effectiveness of the elements affiliated to the Naval Forces Command, to improve the decision-making abilities of the headquarters staff and the units in the field against different threats and to increase the level of operational readiness.

Another important topic is testing interoperability between different forces. In this context, sea, land and air elements work together in different stages of the same operational scenarios.

This structure makes Denizkurdu-I/2026 a comprehensive exercise that highlights the coordination of not only the Naval Forces but also different force commands.

100 ships and 50 aircraft are on duty

The naval power of the exercise consists of many different platform classes.

Multi-purpose amphibious ships, frigates, corvettes, assault boats, submarines, mine hunting ships, patrol ships, amphibious landing ships and auxiliary class ships took part in the Distinguished Observer Day activities.

On the air elements side, various planes, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles are used. Thus, the coordination of naval platforms with air elements and the joint operation capability against different threats are tested in the field.

The scale of the exercise, in which approximately 14 thousand personnel participated, is further expanded by using different platform classes in the same scenario.

Distinguished Observer Day at TCG Anatolia

Distinguished Observer Day, one of the remarkable stages of Denizkurdu-I/2026, is held on September 24, based at TCG Anadolu, off the coast of Marmaris Aksaz in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Chief of General Staff General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu also came to TCG Anadolu within the scope of Distinguished Observer Day. Within the scope of the visit of Bayraktaroğlu, who was welcomed with 19 artillery fire by TCG Oruç Reis, the drill activities were followed on-site.

The day's scenarios did not consist only of naval combat activities. Different missions such as mine warfare, amphibious operations, boarding and sanitary evacuation were also implemented.

Mine hunting and amphibious operations were carried out

In one of the first stages of the Distinguished Observer Day activities, a mine hunting activity was carried out.

The mine detected by the Underwater Defense teams working on TCG Amasra and the helicopter was neutralized. This scenario tested the reconnaissance, detection and intervention capabilities of naval elements against mine threats.

Then, the first entry operation scenario to Yılancık Island was implemented. Attack helicopters participated in the operation against the island from the air and SAT attack boats from the sea.

After the naval elements reached the shore, SAT teams landed on the island and planted a flag.

Within the scope of the scenario, it was planned to evacuate a personnel injured on the island by helicopter and to carry out a medical evacuation by bringing the TCG to Anatolia. Thus, non-combat emergency and personnel rescue elements were also included in the operational scenario.

The boarding operation was also implemented

A boarding operation was also carried out within the scope of the exercise.

SAT personnel climbed onto the ship using a rope from the helicopter and raised a flag on the ship. With this activity, the coordination of special force operations against naval platforms with different elements was tested.

Such activities show that Denizkurdu-I/2026 is not limited to classical naval combat scenarios. Within the scope of the exercise, different mission areas such as reconnaissance, mine warfare, amphibious operations, special force operations and air-sea coordination are handled within the same set of activities.

KALKAN DİHA's TCG is a historical first in Anatolia

One of the most striking developments of the exercise in terms of defense technologies was the use of the KALKAN Vertical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (DİHA) from TCG Anadolu for the first time.

KALKAN, developed by Baykar, is among the newly added unmanned aerial vehicles to the Navy inventory. Thanks to its vertical take-off and landing capability, the system can operate without relying on the need for a classical runway.

KALKAN's take-off from TCG Anadolu draws attention in terms of the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship's usage concept with unmanned aerial vehicles.

More importantly, KALKAN did not just take off and perform a demonstration flight. The detection information obtained in the exercise scenario was used as the element that guided the mission of another unmanned platform.

SHIELD detected, PIRANA destroyed the target

In the scenario carried out within the scope of Denizkurdu-I/2026, the surface target determined by KALKAN DİHA was destroyed by the PİRANA Kamikaze Unmanned Marine Vehicle (KİDA) developed by MKE.

This activity demonstrated the use of two unmanned platforms operating in different areas within the same mission chain.

In the first stage of the scenario, KALKAN DİHA at the airport performed target detection. Then, in line with the target information obtained, PİRANA KİDA carried out an attack on the target on the sea surface.

Thus, the reconnaissance and detection capability of the air platform and the attack capability of the unmanned marine vehicle were combined in the same scenario.

Within the scope of the exercise, PİRANA was planned to attack a surface target with a warhead of approximately 100 kilograms. In its briefing on September 24, the Ministry of National Defense announced that PIRANA destroyed the target.

Air defense and actual weapons training

Another important dimension of Denizkurdu-I/2026 is actual weapons training and air defense activities.

The main purpose of the exercise is to improve the decision-making processes of the personnel and the command level against different threats through realistic scenarios. Therefore, the activities include not only the mobility of the platforms, but also the combined use of sensors, command-control and weapon systems.

The operation of air elements together with naval platforms and the inclusion of maritime patrol planes and helicopters in the scenarios are also part of this joint structure.

Within the scope of Distinguished Observer Day, flare firing was also carried out from the maritime patrol aircraft against the guided munitions threat. It was reported that the first part of the activities was completed with the submarine surfacing.

Simultaneous operation in four seas

One of the factors that determine the scale of Denizkurdu-I/2026 is that the exercise is not carried out in a single region.

According to the official exercise announcement of the Ministry of National Defense, the activities are carried out simultaneously in the Black Sea, Marmara Sea, Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean. The exercise started on September 20 and will be completed on September 25.

Although three sea regions were mentioned in some sources in the initial announcements, the Marmara Sea is clearly included among the exercise areas in the official press release of the Ministry of National Defense. Therefore, the current scope is evaluated over four sea regions.

Conducting simultaneous operations in different geographies allows the forces to test their ability to operate in different sea and weather conditions, maintain command-control processes and ensure coordination between elements.

Why is Denizkurdu-I/2026 important?

One of the highlights of Denizkurdu-I/2026 is the combination of traditional manned platforms and new generation unmanned systems in the same exercise scenarios.

While amphibious ships, frigates, corvettes, submarines, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles served together in the activities carried out in the center of TCG Anatolia, the use of KALKAN DİHA and PİRANA KİDA in the same mission chain was one of the concrete examples of this transformation.

In particular, KALKAN's detection of a target and PİRANA's destruction of this target indicate that an exercise scenario was implemented to use different platforms to complement each other's capabilities.

However, this activity alone does not mean that the operational use concept of all systems has been finalized. The main purpose of the scenarios carried out in the exercise is to evaluate and improve joint working capabilities between personnel, command-control structures and platforms.

The exercise will be completed on September 25

Exercise Denizkurdu-I/2026, which started on September 20, is planned to be completed on September 25. During the exercise, operational preparations, actual weapons training and joint missions are carried out in different sea regions.

Distinguished Observer Day on September 24 was one of the most comprehensive stages of the exercise that was reflected to the public. Scenarios for mine warfare, amphibious operations, boarding, air defense and joint use of unmanned systems were implemented in TCG Anatolia-based activities.