VESSEL REVIEW | Babur – Pakistan Navy corvette to take on air defence and surface warfare missions
The Pakistan Navy has commissioned the lead ship of a new class of heavy corvette developed jointly by local company Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works (KS&EW) and Istanbul Naval Shipyard (INSY) of Turkey. PNS Babur is the first of four MILGEM corvettes that will be built for the Pakistan Navy. Under the newbuilding contract, two ships will be built by INSY and the remaining two will be constructed in Pakistan by KS&EW. All four ships will comply with Turk Loydu class requirements.
The Babur-class corvettes, as the MILGEM ships are known in Pakistani service, are variants of the Ada-class corvettes being operated by the Turkish Navy. However, unlike the Ada-class corvettes, which are optimised for anti-submarine warfare (ASW), the Babur-class ships will also be employed for anti-surface warfare (ASuW) and anti-air warfare (AAW).
Potent platform against air, surface, and sub-surface threats
Babur has a length of 108.8 metres (357 feet), a beam of 14.8 metres (48.6 feet), a draught of 4.05 metres (13.3 feet), and a displacement of 2,888 tonnes. A combined diesel and gas (CODAG) arrangement that includes two MTU 16V595 engines and a GE LM2500 gas turbine propel the corvette to a maximum speed of 31 knots. Alternatively, at more economical cruising speeds, the ship can sail up to 3,500 nautical miles or stay out at sea for 15 days.
The array of armaments includes a battery of six P-282 anti-ship cruise missiles, 12 Albatros NG surface-to-air missiles, Mark 32 324mm torpedoes, a Leonardo 76mm rapid-fire naval gun, an Aselsan GOKDENIZ 35mm close-in weapon system for point defence against missiles and low-flying airborne threats, and two Aselsan STOP 25mm autocannons fitted on remote weapon stations. Also fitted is an Aselsan HIZIR decoy countermeasure system to defend the ship against torpedo attack.
Improved durability and comprehensive sensor suite
Aselsan supplied many of the corvette’s combat sensors including fire control and S-band radars, an electro-optical surveillance system, and an infrared search and track system while Havelsan installed a Genesis Advent combat management system. Northrop Grumman provided the INS/GPS and Meteksan installed a hull-mounted sonar capable of extended-duration operations in shallow as well as deep waters. The radars are capable of long-range detection and tracking.
The corvette also incorporates features that reduce the risk of it being detected by hostile radar, sonar, and acoustic sensors and also increase resistance to chemical, biological, radioactive, and nuclear attack as well as shock impact damage. A platform control and monitoring system meanwhile constantly controls and gives warnings to the onboard systems, allowing the ship to operate with a smaller crew complement compared to surface combatants of similar size.
Babur is also equipped with a flight deck and hangar facilities for use by a helicopter and unmanned aerial vehicles. These aircraft will augment the corvette’s own capability to conduct missions such as ASW, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), and search and rescue (SAR).
