IN Brief:
- RAJA LAUT is the second of three LMS Batch II corvettes being built for the Royal Malaysian Navy.
- STM is leading design, construction management, procurement, integration, testing, documentation, and logistics support.
- The programme strengthens Türkiye’s naval export position in APAC while showcasing a heavily Turkish combat-system supply chain.
The launch of RAJA LAUT, the second Littoral Mission Ship Batch II corvette for the Royal Malaysian Navy, keeps Malaysia’s three-ship programme moving through Turkish production with little visible slack in the schedule.
The vessel entered the water at Istanbul Shipyard two weeks after the first ship in the class, with the third corvette scheduled to follow later this year. All three ships are planned for delivery in 2027, giving the programme a compressed build, integration, and test window for vessels of around 2,500 tonnes.
STM is responsible for design, project and construction management, materials and systems procurement, integration design, assembly, testing, integrated logistics support, and technical documentation. That breadth makes the programme more than a hull-construction order. It is a naval export package covering shipbuilding, combat-system installation, weapons integration, trials, training, support, and through-life documentation.
Malaysia’s LMS Batch II ships are being built in Türkiye and configured for Royal Malaysian Navy requirements. The design is just under 100 metres long, with a beam of more than 14 metres, a speed above 26 knots, a range above 4,000 nautical miles at cruising speed, and endurance of 14 days. The propulsion arrangement is based on a CODAD configuration using four diesel engines, reduction gears, two shafts, and controllable-pitch propellers.
The combat fit reflects Türkiye’s increasingly integrated naval export model. HAVELSAN, ASELSAN, and ROKETSAN are among the companies involved, with systems covering combat management, fire control, radar, identification, electronic support measures, decoys, guns, and the ATMACA surface-to-surface missile. For Asia-Pacific customers, the package presents a largely Turkish supply chain with an expanding set of shipboard electronics and weapons.
Across the region, demand is growing for mid-sized surface combatants able to conduct patrol, escort, surveillance, and limited high-end warfighting without the cost, crewing burden, or procurement cycle of larger frigates and destroyers. Corvettes in the 2,000–3,000 tonne class offer a useful compromise, with enough space for meaningful sensors and anti-ship weapons, while remaining attainable for navies that need more hulls in the water.
That compromise places real pressure on the production system. A modern corvette is no longer a simple patrol hull with a gun, radar, and communications suite. Combat-management software, electronic warfare systems, secure communications, missile interfaces, helicopter facilities, power distribution, cooling, damage control, and maintenance access all have to be packed into a compact platform. The ship’s value depends as much on systems integration as steelwork.
RAJA LAUT’s launch also reinforces the changing structure of export shipbuilding. Traditional Western naval primes remain influential, but Türkiye is carving out a stronger position through modular designs, domestic weapons, competitive pricing, and the ability to present ship, sensor, missile, and support packages as a connected offer. That approach is now visible across naval vessels, UAVs, missiles, and armoured vehicles.
For Malaysia, programme pace will be watched as closely as specification. Regional maritime-security demands are expanding around exclusive economic zones, grey-zone activity, submarine awareness, and long-range surveillance. A programme that moves from launch to delivery without the delays common in naval procurement would give Kuala Lumpur a useful capability gain and create a reference point for future fleet renewal.
The same regional drive for surface combatant capacity has been visible in Japan and Indonesia weigh Asagiri-class destroyer transfer, where a very different route to maritime capability still reflects the same pressure: Asia-Pacific navies need more credible hulls, sensors, weapons, and support structures.
The LMS Batch II programme shows where export naval demand is heading. Customers want ships that are capable, deliverable, supportable, and politically manageable. They also want weapons availability, maintenance confidence, documentation, training, and supply chains that do not become fragile after handover. RAJA LAUT’s launch is therefore a production milestone for Malaysia and a credibility marker for Türkiye’s naval industry in Asia-Pacific.