ANKARA / ISTANBUL 

Italy’s financial guard, la Guardia di Finanza (GdF), is visiting Türkiye on Wednesday with a delegation to look at the country’s unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) and their capabilities.

Rafnar boats in Türkiye, which are fully autonomous and remote-controlled thanks to the integration of advanced software developed in collaboration with Turkish firms Havelsan and VN Maritime, are attracting global customers.

The vehicle was remotely controlled, and its capabilities were further demonstrated for the Italian delegation, while Havelsan showcased its unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) to the visitors.

The GdF needs to establish and maintain continuous maritime surveillance to ensure uninterrupted presence in ports, coastal areas, and regions with dense maritime traffic.

Unmanned solutions come to the forefront in these use cases due to the lower safety risks to personnel, particularly in risky and long-term missions.

USVs can be deployed in patrol, surveillance, and inspection missions at lower operating costs, which in turn boosts operational efficiency. In addition, these vehicles can be used in monitoring marine pollution, illegal dumping, and environmental violations.

These solutions need to be compatible with existing monitoring, communications, and decision support systems, not to replace humans but rather to complement them.

Fully autonomous and remotely controlled Rafnar boats can help the GdF achieve its institutional goals, such as monitoring larger areas with fewer personnel, lowering operational costs in the medium term, improving personnel safety, and ensuring maritime safety and environmental responsibilities through digital solutions.