Türkiye has tested a 5G-linked robotic surgery system aboard the TCG Anadolu, with doctors on land providing real-time guidance to a surgical team on the ship, as part of efforts to expand medical care during missions far from shore.
The demonstration, conducted by the Turkish Naval Forces and Kocaeli University during Teknofest Blue Homeland at Gölcük Shipyard Command, was performed on an organ model and did not involve a patient.
The trial used telementoring, allowing specialists at Kocaeli University to monitor the procedure and guide the team aboard the vessel.
Full telesurgery, in which a surgeon ashore directly controls a robot on the ship, remains a later phase of the project.
Officials involved in the initiative said the test was the first of its kind aboard a combat vessel and could pave the way for Türkiye to become the first country to conduct full robotic surgery on a military ship with Role 2 medical capabilities.
Kocaeli University Rector Nuh Zafer Cantürk said the systems at the university hospital and aboard the ship were synchronized through 5G.
The connection recorded latency of around 135 milliseconds, allowing movements to be transmitted with little delay, he said.
Cantürk said the project would progress through teleconsultation, telementoring, teleproctoring and experimental robotic surgery before moving to fully remote operations.
Procedures involving the gallbladder and appendix, as well as some gynecological operations, could eventually be performed using the system, he added.
Saadettin Hülagü, a Kocaeli lawmaker and former rector of Kocaeli University, said the project was launched after the team examined whether robotic surgery could be supported aboard a naval vessel operating far from Türkiye.
Tests indicated that vibration levels aboard the TCG Anadolu were sufficiently low for the initial work, while 5G provided the required connection, according to Hülagü.
TCG Anadolu commander Navy Col. Nadir Kılınç said the ship’s Role 2 medical facilities include a 32-bed patient unit, an eight-bed intensive care unit, a burn treatment unit, two operating rooms, dental facilities, advanced imaging equipment, a blood bank and a laboratory.
He said the technology could eventually enable surgical procedures to be conducted aboard the vessel while it is operating hundreds of miles from Türkiye.
Kocaeli University professor Önder Kara said the next phase would pair two control consoles and move the project from telementoring to full telesurgery.
Tests would initially be conducted on an animal model before progressing to procedures involving patients, he added.
