# TCG Anadolu

TCG Anadolu (L-400) is a drone-carrying amphibious assault ship of the Turkish Navy. It is named after the peninsula of Anatolia (Turkish: Anadolu) which forms the majority of the land mass of Turkey. The construction works began on 30 April 2016 at the shipyard of Sedef Shipbuilding Inc. in Istanbul, with the keel being laid on 7 February 2018. TCG Anadolu was commissioned with a ceremony on 10 April 2023.
The vessel is intended to meet the various needs and requirements of the Turkish Armed Forces, such as sustaining long-endurance, long-distance military combat or humanitarian relief operations, while acting as a command center and flagship for the Turkish Navy.
The Sedef–Navantia consortium won the tender for the amphibious assault ship project of the Turkish Navy. Anadolu used the same design as that of the Spanish ship Juan Carlos I. All of the ship's weapon systems were procured by Turkish firms Aselsan and Havelsan. The ship features a Turkish combat management system, the GENESIS-ADVENT, which was integrated by Aselsan and Havelsan. Aircraft landing is assisted in all weather condition by Leonardo SPN-720 Precision Approach Radar.
Navantia provided design, technology transfer, equipment and technical assistance to Sedef Shipyard of Turkey for the design and development of Anadolu.

## History
### Design and specifications

In December 2013, the Turkish LPD/LHD program was originally estimated to cost €375 million ($500 million). According to the original plan, the Turkish Navy wanted a slightly shorter flight deck without the ski-jump ramp in front, to be optimized for use with only helicopters.
The Turkish Navy later changed its plan and opted for a fully equipped flight deck with the ski-jump ramp in front, after deciding to purchase F-35B STOVL aircraft. Turkey was a Level 3 partner in the Joint Strike Fighter program that led to the F-35 Lightning II. The Turkish Air Force was intending to get the F-35A CTOL version, until the U.S. Senate blocked the export of the fighter jet to Turkey due to its purchase of the S-400 missile system from Russia, which is subjected to CAATSA sanctions. Instead of the F-35B STOVL version, in the short term the Turkish Navy will operate domestically-produced UCAVs such as the Bayraktar TB3 and Bayraktar Kızılelma.
According to the official specifications, TCG Anadolu will be capable of operating up to 10 F-35Bs, if Turkey purchases the aircraft in the future, and 12 medium-sized helicopters in the "V/STOL aircraft carrier" configuration.
The dimensions of the final design are 231 meters (757 ft 10 in) in length, a 32-meter (105 ft 0 in) beam, a 6.8-meter (22 ft 4 in) draft, and 58 meters (190 ft 3 in) in height. Her displacement is 24,660 tons in "V/STOL aircraft carrier" mission configuration, or 27,079 tons in "amphibious assault ship" mission configuration. Her maximum speed is 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h; 24.7 mph) in "STOVL aircraft carrier" configuration, or 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph) in "amphibious assault ship" configuration. Her maximum range is 9,000 nautical miles (17,000 km; 10,000 mi) at an economical speed.

#### Amphibious assault ship configuration

The ship has a 1,880 m$^2$ (20,200 sq ft) light cargo garage for TEU containers and 27 Amphibious Assault Vehicles (AAV); a 1,165 m$^2$ (12,540 sq ft) dock which can host four Landing Craft Mechanized (LCM) or two Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC), or two Landing Craft Vehicle Personnel (LCVP); and a 1,410 m$^2$ (15,200 sq ft) garage for heavy loads, which can host 29 main battle tanks (MBT), Amphibious Assault Vehicles, and TEU containers. The ship is protected by the ARAS-2023 diver detection sonar (DDS). She has a crew of 261 personnel: 30 officers, 49 NCOs, 59 leading seamen, and 123 ratings.

#### V/STOL aircraft carrier configuration

The ship has a 5,440 m$^2$ (58,600 sq ft) flight deck and a 990 m$^2$ (10,700 sq ft) aviation hangar which can accommodate either 12 medium-sized helicopters or 8 Boeing CH-47F Chinook heavy-lift helicopters. When the aviation hangar and the light cargo garage are unified, the ship can carry up to 25 medium-sized helicopters. Alternatively, the ship can carry up to 10 F-35B STOVL fighter jets and 12 medium-sized helicopters, with the possibility of hosting six more helicopters on the flight deck of the ship.

#### Aircraft types

The S-70B-28 Seahawk and the AH-1W Super Cobra are the two main types of helicopters that are used on TCG Anadolu, with the occasional use of the Boeing CH-47F Chinook helicopters in the inventory of the Turkish Army during military exercises and operations. The AH-1W Super Cobra helicopters will eventually be complemented and replaced by the TAI T929 ATAK 2.
The MALE Bayraktar TB3 and the jet-powered, low-observable Bayraktar Kızılelma are the two UCAVs that are specifically designed and manufactured to be used on TCG Anadolu.
On 19 November 2024, Baykar Bayraktar TB3 UCAV successfully took-off from the flight deck of TCG Anadolu and landed on the ship. It was the first time a fixed-wing unmanned aircraft of this size and class had successfully landed on a short-runway landing helicopter dock, without the use of an arresting gear.

### Construction and commissioning

The final contract for the construction of the ship was signed with the Navantia-Sedef consortium on 7 May 2015. The commissioning of the ship was initially scheduled for 2021, and the estimated cost of the ship according to the final specifications was declared as $1 billion in 2015. The construction works began on 30 April 2016 at the shipyard of Sedef Shipbuilding Inc. in Istanbul.
A small area in the forward of the ship caught fire whilst in dry dock on the evening of 29 April 2019, but the fire was quickly extinguished and the minor damage on the coating paint (stains of smoke and flames) was subsequently repaired with a fresh repainting.
On 27 February 2022, the sea trials of TCG Anadolu began. TCG Anadolu was commissioned with a ceremony, attended by President Erdoğan, on 10 April 2023.
According to media reports in 2019, the construction of a sister ship, to be named TCG Trakya, was being planned by the Turkish Navy. However, the Turkish Navy gave priority to the construction of the indigenously-designed MUGEM-class aircraft carrier, which began on 2 January 2025. The first MUGEM-class aircraft carrier is being built at the Istanbul Naval Shipyard.