“Mazepa” at sea. The newest Ukrainian corvette has entered sea trials: what is its future fate?

The newest Ukrainian corvette Hetman Ivan Mazepa (F-211), built in Turkey , entered its first sea trials this morning.

This was reported by the Turkish shipspotter en_balci.

The ship was laid down in September 2021 and launched in October 2022.

The bow of the corvette is equipped with an Italian 76-mm OTO Melara cannon and a VL MICA naval anti-aircraft missile system.

Also in the photo you can see the Thales Sting EO MK2 fire control system radar, the Aselsan satellite communications system, the ARES-2N electronic warfare system and the Mk 36 SRBOC dipole jamming system.

To detect air targets, a SMART-S MK2 3D radar and an ALPER navigation radar are installed.

According to unverified information, the corvette is equipped with Harpoon anti-ship missiles and Murene 90 Impact torpedoes.

There is a helicopter hangar at the rear, but the type of aircraft is still unknown. A naval version of the Turkish 35-mm Korkut anti-aircraft gun was installed on the roof of the hangar. On the sides are 12.7 mm STAMP installations, controlled remotely.

Unfortunately, we will not be able to use it in combat operations in the Black Sea until the end of the war – according to the Montreux Convention, Turkey banned the passage of the Bosporus for ships of warring countries.

The second Ukrainian corvette of the ADA project , Hetman Ivan Vygovsky, is also being completed at Turkish shipyards.

Some military experts have proposed using “hells” to blockade the ports of African countries, in particular Sudan and Eritrea, through which the Russian Federation supplies its numerous unofficial groups on this continent. However, this is associated with a number of problems, Dumskaya columnist Viktor Bosnyak is sure:

“First of all, we need to somehow bypass the Russian squadron present in the Mediterranean Sea. Let me remind you that the enemy also has a base in Syria. I don’t know how to do this. It is unlikely that NATO partners will agree to participate in such an adventure, including Ukrainian ships in their formations. In short, this is not science fiction yet,” he says.
DEATH TO THE RUSSIAN OCCUPANTS!