Turkish defence software company HAVELSAN has completed provisional acceptance of the Eastern Mediterranean Vessel Traffic Services (DAGTH) project, built for Türkiye’s Directorate General of Maritime Affairs. In an official post on 11 November 2026, the company said its MATRA system would provide continuous surveillance, real-time tracking and digital port management in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and the Eastern Mediterranean.
State broadcaster TRT Haber had already reported the same milestone on 8 November, in line with the company’s announcement. According to that reporting, the contract was signed in 2023, field work began in 2024, and provisional acceptance testing ran from 17 August to 20 October 2026.
What provisional acceptance means
Provisional acceptance is the contractual step in which the customer confirms that the installed system meets the technical requirements set out in the contract, typically before a later final acceptance after a period in service. Neither HAVELSAN nor the ministry has announced a date for final acceptance, or the value of the contract.
Three stations in Northern Cyprus, linked to Mersin
The system’s backbone is three traffic surveillance stations built at Çayırova, Sadrazamköy and Dipkarpaz in Northern Cyprus. After the sensors and subsystems were supplied and integrated, the network was fully linked to the Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) centre in Mersin, on Türkiye’s Mediterranean coast.
TRT Haber, citing the announcement, said the indigenous system detects ship movements in its coverage area and builds a single maritime picture. Identity, route, navigation and cargo data on vessels in that area are shared in real time, and securely, with both the TRNC VTS centre and the Mersin centre.
MATRA and digital port management
HAVELSAN’s 11 November post explicitly named MATRA, the company’s digital maritime product family. On its official product page, HAVELSAN describes MATRA VTS as an IALA-compliant, web-based vessel traffic services platform. It integrates data from radar, the Automatic Identification System (AIS), cameras, meteorological sensors and other sources to track vessels in real time and support early detection of risks.
The project also includes an integrated Port Management Information System, which is intended to track vessels arriving at and leaving ports in Northern Cyprus digitally, with the stated aim of improving security, coordination and efficiency in port operations.
Opened in July, built on the Turkish Straits experience
The system was officially opened on 20 July 2026 at the Gazimağusa (Famagusta) VTS centre, at a ceremony attended by Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu. In its announcement at the time, HAVELSAN said the AI-supported system fuses radars, electronic sensors, communications infrastructure and field towers into a single operational picture.
HAVELSAN General Manager Dr Mehmet Akif Nacar said the company had replaced foreign-origin software in the Turkish Straits VTS with an indigenous solution in 2023, and that the system commissioned in Northern Cyprus was developed with a higher degree of local content and designed to work with Türkiye’s existing national maritime systems. He said the system can assess vessel movements and help detect smuggling and other unlawful activity in real time.
For the Eastern Mediterranean, the practical effect is a shared, real-time picture of shipping between Mersin and Northern Cyprus in a busy and politically sensitive sea area, covering navigation safety, port management and incident response. HAVELSAN has not published figures for the number of vessels tracked, or the sensor specifications at the three coastal stations.
The project also adds a reference case as HAVELSAN markets command-and-control, simulation and maritime systems to partners in the Middle East and Africa. The company has not announced an export of this specific VTS configuration.
Sources
- HAVELSAN, official X post, 11 November 2026: x.com/HAVELSAN
- TRT Haber, 8 November 2026: trthaber.com
- HAVELSAN, “HAVELSAN’s AI-Powered Vessel Traffic Services System Enters Operation in the TRNC”, 31 July 2026: havelsan.com
- HAVELSAN, MATRA product page: havelsan.com