Türkiye's Havelsan expands AI-powered underwater warfare with new integrated C5ISR architecture.

Havelsan is developing several integrated submarine combat and mission systems, combining sensors, weapons, and command functions within a unified C5ISR architecture.

The Turkish company Havelsan expands its underwater C5ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) architecture, integrating submarines, UUVs, and hybrid maritime systems. By developing integrated submarine combat and mission systems combining sensors, weapons, and command functions, Havelsan will support Türkiye's main naval modernization projects, such as the MILDEN national submarine, as well as network-enabled multi-domain operations.
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Havelsan's new integrated underwater C5ISR architecture connects submarines, UUVs, surface ships, aircraft, satellites, and land systems for network-enabled, multi-domain operations. (Picture source: Havelsan)

On March 17, 2026, Havelsan outlined the expansion of its underwater C5ISR capabilities, focusing on an integrated architecture covering submarines, unmanned underwater vehicles and hybrid maritime systems, while aligning these developments with the Future Operating Environment defined by multi-domain operations and cross-domain command across land, sea, air, space and cyberspace. This operational framework requires synchronized command structures and network-enabled capability architectures to ensure real-time data exchange and coordinated engagement between distributed assets. Underwater systems are gaining operational weight due to low observability, extended submerged endurance, and survivability against detection, yet their effectiveness depends on the ability to integrate sensors, weapons and command functions into a unified system capable of sustained operations under degraded communications.

Havelsan’s development trajectory is embedded within Türkiye’s naval modernization cycle, which includes more than 30 vessels under construction across multiple programs and a transition toward indigenous combat systems and subsystems. The MİLDEN national submarine program illustrates this trajectory, with the Atılay-class expected to displace about 2,700 tons surfaced, integrate eight 533 mm torpedo tubes as well as cruise missiles, including Gezgin land-attack missiles. These submarines are designed with air-independent propulsion enabling extended submerged operations and reduced acoustic signature, while their combat management architecture is expected to rely on national systems derived from the Advent and Müren families. Havelsan’s role as the primary system provider and integrator of naval combat systems for the Turkish Navy for more than two decades positions its solutions as a central component of this transition toward sovereign underwater warfare capabilities.

Supporting distributed and networked operations, as well as ensuring interoperability across domains and platforms within a unified command environment, the company’s portfolio includes integrated combat management systems (ICMS) for submarines, compact mission systems (CMS) for mini and lightweight submarines, and dedicated mission systems for unmanned underwater vehicles, all incorporating Operation Intelligence and Operation Autonomy functions. Operation Intelligence processes acoustic and non-acoustic sensor data onboard to detect patterns, correlations, and operational impacts across multiple data streams, while Operation Autonomy applies these outputs to decision-support processes in crewed submarines and to autonomous control in unmanned systems. These functions are designed by Havelsan to reduce operator workload, enable faster reaction cycles, and maintain operational flexibility in contested environments where communication with external command structures may be degraded or denied.

For instance, the Seda Integrated Submarine Combat Management System forms the core of Havelsan’s submarine offering, integrating sonar inputs, navigation systems, and weapon control into a single architecture that supports the entire detection-to-engagement cycle. The system enables track management, target motion analysis, classification, situational awareness, and firing solutions, while also incorporating onboard simulation, testing, data recording, and analysis functions for mission evaluation and training. Furthermore, the Seda’s deployment on Turkish submarines and in foreign modernization programs (such as the Pakistani Agosta 90B submarine) indicates operational maturity and compatibility with different submarine classes, including conventional submarines such as Type 209 or similar classes undergoing upgrades and new-generation boats designed with fully digital combat architectures.

For vessels with limited onboard space and crew, Havelsan’s Submarine Compact Mission System combines steering, navigation, sensor management, weapon control, and engineering management into a more compact architecture. This CMS system is optimized for mini and lightweight submarines operating in littoral environments where maneuverability and rapid decision cycles are required, and where crew size constraints demand high levels of automation. In parallel, UUV Compact Mission Systems extend these capabilities to unmanned underwater vehicles and hybrid systems, supporting payload integration, situational awareness, and autonomous mission execution, while enabling control either from land-based command centers or through integration with Advent-based command and control systems, improving distributed operations within network-enabled structures.

For instance, the Advent Müren underwater combat management system extends the Advent architecture to the subsurface domain, applying a system-of-systems approach in which all onboard subsystems contribute to a unified combat picture. The Advent integrates radar, sonar, electronic warfare systems, and weapons into a single command architecture capable of producing a shared operational picture across multiple assets. In surface applications, this architecture has demonstrated real-time data exchange between ships and unmanned aerial systems, enabling coordinated operations within task groups, and similar principles are applied underwater through AI-supported acoustic and non-acoustic sensor management, intelligence libraries, Operation Intelligence and Operation Autonomy functions, 3D operational planning, and high-redundancy architecture for continuous operation under failure conditions. Enabling unified data processing and coordinated decision-making, this approach supports multi-domain operations by ensuring that submarine actions are integrated with broader naval and joint force activities.

Complementary subsystems include the Toraks Torpedo Fire Control System, which manages firing sequences, safety zone management, and post-launch guidance, as well as cruise missile fire control systems integrated directly into the combat management architecture with dedicated local control units for redundancy. Data distribution is handled by the Substar system, which collects, prioritizes, and distributes navigation, communication, combat, and sensor data with high-speed, low-latency performance while providing redundancy and recording functionality comparable to a black box. Additional systems include the Timemaster for secure GNSS-based time synchronization using GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, and BeiDou signals, antenna distribution units for optimized GNSS RF signal distribution, and GNSS receivers designed to operate with anti-jamming systems to maintain positioning and timing accuracy under electronic interference.

Operational validation, scalability, automatic performance analysis, and lifecycle monitoring are addressed through systems such as the HD-Opera (integrated with the Substar system), which measures the operational performance of submarine sensors and weapons compared to reference data, as well as reduces the duration of harbour and sea acceptance tests. The Automatic Weapon Expulsion Measurement System, for its part, measures and calibrates the submarine's missile launch parameters to ensure safety and consistency over time. Havelsan’s combat system integration services cover system-to-system and system-to-platform integration, extending from concept definition and planning to hardware production, simulator development, integrated logistics support, training, and consultancy.

Speaking of which, Havelsan's training systems include a submarine diving simulator for Type 209/1400 Preveze and Gür-class submarines, enabling scenario-based exercises under underwater and surface conditions, including emergency procedures, while the Submarine CIC Orchestration concept focuses on human factors, addressing communication needs, physical layout, data visualization, reduced cognitive workload, and console design within data-intensive control rooms by optimizing human-machine interaction. Additionally, the Çaka H-UMV hybrid unmanned maritime vehicle complements this structure with a system capable of surface and submerged operations across missions including ISR, A2-AD, kamikaze operations, mine countermeasures, and special forces support, environmental monitoring and search and rescue within network-enabled combat architectures.

Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.