Aselsan announced on 6 May that it has signed a contract to supply an undisclosed number of remote-controlled weapon systems (RCWS) to the Royal Bahrain Naval Forces (RBNF).
Aselsan accompanied its announcement with this image of what appeared to be a SMASH, but with a 25 mm gun and a different electro-optical system. (Aselsan)
The Turkish company did not identify the system and declined to provide further details of the contract but accompanied the press release with an image of what appeared to be a version of its SMASH naval RCWS on a MRTP 33 fast patrol boat.
The Qatari navy is the only known operator of MRTP 33s fitted with SMASH systems, which are armed with the 30 mm Bushmaster II dual-feed cannon that Aselsan advertises as the standard weapon for this type of RCWS.
However, the image that accompanied the Bahraini announcement appeared to show a SMASH with a 25 mm cannon and a different electro-optical system.
The SMASH is fully stabilised to enable it to engage moving targets at sea and has a separately stabilised electro-optical system that can be used for surveillance without aiming the weapon. The 30 mm cannon is capable of firing 200 rounds a minute.
Aselsan has previously carried out an upgrade of the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters. This included the installation of the company’s ASELFLIR-300T surveillance and targeting system, as well as a new cockpit display, and navigation, mission, and weapons management systems.
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