Pakistan’s 4th and final Milgem-class corvette hits the water in Karachi

Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works (KS&EW) has launched the fourth and final Milgem-class corvette for the Pakistan Navy.

As informed, the vessel PNS Tariq was launched on 2 August. The ceremony was attended by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz, Pakistan’s Naval Chief Admiral Muhammad Amjad Khan Niazi, and other high-ranking representatives from Pakistan and Turkiye. The keel for the final corvette of this class was laid last November.

In July 2018, Pakistan Navy signed an agreement with Turkish firm ASFAT for the acquisition of four Milgem-class ships. Under the contract, two ships were to be constructed at Istanbul Naval Shipyard and the other two at KS&EW.

The Milgem-class corvettes for Pakistan are based on the Ada-class corvettes built for the Turkish Navy under the Milgem project, which includes constructing both corvettes and frigates.

The units feature a length of 99 metres, a displacement of 2,400 tonnes and can reach a speed of 29 nautical miles. They are equipped with advanced surface, sub-surface and anti-air weapons and sensors, integrated through an advanced network-centric combat management system.

The lead Milgem-class corvette was launched at Istanbul Naval Shipyard in August last year. The four vessels are planned for delivery between 2023 and 2025.