Romanian Navy Receives “Rear-Admiral August Roman” Corvette Purchased From Turkey

The Romanian Navy has been reinforced with the “Rear-Admiral August Roman” corvette purchased from Turkey.

Defense Romania reported on this.

Romanian President Nicușor Dan, together with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, participated in the flag-transfer ceremony in Istanbul.

According to a press release from the Romanian Presidential Administration, the ceremony at the Istanbul shipyard marks the ship’s entry into operational service with the Romanian Navy. The next step will be its redeployment to the country.

The Romanian President stated that the “Rear-Admiral August Roman” will strengthen Romania’s contribution to regional security and the implementation of the commitments the country has made within the North Atlantic Alliance.

“Rear-Admiral August Roman” Corvette

The HISAR-class vessels are based on the Ada corvette design developed under the MILGEM program. TCG Akhisar was laid down in September 2023 at a shipyard in Istanbul, and the ship began sea trials in December 2024.

Formally, HISAR-class ships are classified as offshore patrol vessels (OPV), but Romania designates its vessel as a light corvette, as it plans to equip it with a broader range of weapons.

The main tactical and technical characteristics of the “Rear-Admiral August Roman” corvette:

• displacement — 2,300 tons;
• length — 99.56 m;
• width — 14.42 m;
• draft — 3.77 m;
• crew — 104 people;
• autonomy — 21 days;
• cruising range — 4,500 nautical miles;
• maximum speed — 24 knots;
• cruising speed — 12 knots.

Armament:

• artillery armament — 76 mm MKE naval gun, Aselsan GÖKDENİZ CIWS, and two 12.7 mm machine guns;
• air defense missile armament — Mk 56 vertical launch system for RIM-162 ESSM missiles;
• anti-ship armament — eight Naval Strike Missile missiles;
• anti-submarine armament — Roketsan ASW anti-submarine rocket system;
• aviation group — hangar and deck for one ship-based helicopter and one Bayraktar UAV;
• sonar system — Meteksan Yakamos 2020 new-generation hull-mounted sonar;
• radar systems — Aselsan MAR-D 3D surveillance radar, Aselsan AKR-D fire control radar, and LPI navigation radar.

The Supreme Council of National Defense of Romania approved the purchase of a new light corvette for the Navy in March 2025. However, the exact ship planned for acquisition was not disclosed at the time. It was announced in July 2025 that Romania would purchase an already built HISAR-class patrol vessel for the Navy.

The Ministry of National Defense stated at the time that the urgent need to have at least one modern combat ship in the Black Sea prompted Romania to turn to Turkey. It was noted that the vessel is intended to protect the country’s economic interests, in particular the Neptun Deep gas platform, which is expected to become operational in 2027.

In December 2025, Turkish defense contractor ASFAT announced it had signed a contract with the Romanian Ministry of National Defense to sell the HISAR-class patrol ship TCG Akhisar (P-1220). The deal was valued at approximately €223 million.