The Turkish submarine operations and rescue vessel “TCG Alemdar (A-582)” is expected to arrive in the occupied territories today so that it can use its equipment to reach the seabed at the site of the tragic shipwreck off Kyrenia and approach it to investigate whether there are any people trapped inside and to rescue them.
The arrival today, Wednesday, of the “TCG Alemdar (A-582)” was also announced by the Turkish Cypriot leader, Tufan Erhürman, who visited the families of the victims of the horrific shipwreck.
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“I feel your pain in my heart,” Erhürman said, addressing the victims’ families: “Right now, all our attention is focused on reaching the wreck and recovering whatever we can from there to the surface.”
So far, the accident toll stands at 8 dead and 20 missing. Yesterday, as a reminder, the first ship sent from Turkey to support the search and rescue efforts, the “TCG Işın,” arrived and immediately began operations.
The Turkish Cypriot leader, who is monitoring the search for the ill-fated ship, also stated yesterday that “the location of an object believed to be the sunken ship has been identified. The object was located at a depth of 550 meters. I repeat, it is believed to be the sunken ship.”
The “TCG Alemdar (A-582)”
According to open-source information, the “TCG Alemdar (A-582)” is an Alemdar-class (MOSHIP) submarine support and rescue vessel of the Turkish Navy. It was ordered on October 28, 2011, built by the Istanbul Shipyards, and launched on April 29, 2014.
It is designed to carry out underwater and surface search and rescue missions under various sea conditions. Its primary mission is to rescue submarines that are unable to surface under their own power. It is capable of providing life support to the stranded crew of a submarine in distress at a maximum depth of 600 m (2,000 ft). It is equipped with remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and atmospheric diving suits (ADS).
This is a modern vessel with sophisticated equipment, which can help maintain an adequate level of rescue and recovery capability for the Turkish Navy’s fleet of fourteen diesel-electric submarines
The “TCG Alemdar” is 91.0 m (298 ft 7 in) long, 18.5 m (60 ft 8 in) wide, and has a maximum draft of 7.8 m (25 ft 7 in). It has a speed of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph). At a speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph), it has a range of 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km; 5,200 mi).
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