The SAR 127 is essentially a license-built version of America’s iconic Browning M2 “Ma Deuce” .50 caliber.
Turkey remains a member of NATO and therefore an ally of the United States of America, in spite of the fact that strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan and America’s leaders have not always seen eye to eye. For example, Erdogan’s duplicitous playing of both sides of the Russia-Ukraine War (cozying up to Vladimir Putin on the one hand while selling tank-killing Baytaktar TB2 drones to Ukraine on the other hand) and his radical Islamist agenda (he essentially wants to resurrect the Ottoman Empire) certainly won’t win him any friends in the Trump administration.
Erdogan’s geopolitical machinations notwithstanding, the Turkish arms industry continues to expand its worldwide customer base. And now, the newest customer for that arms industry is also a long-standing U.S. ally, but one far away from NATO’s geographical territory: the Philippines.
The Philippines Is Buying Turkish Arms
The story comes to us from an April 28, 2025, report on the Army Recognition website titled “Philippine Navy’s future landing platform docks to be armed with Turkish heavy machine guns from Sarsilmaz.” To wit:
“As reported by Max Montero on April 28, 2025, the Philippine Navy has awarded a contract to Türkiye’s Sarsilmaz Silah Sanayi A.Ş. to supply up to 16 SAR 127 MT 0.50 machine guns for two upcoming Landing Platform Docks (LPDs) currently under construction at PT PAL Indonesia’s shipyard. A Notice of Award was issued, with a total contract value of PHP 35,606,500.00 (approximately USD 640,917). The selection follows a public bidding process conducted under the rules of the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 9184. The LPDs are being built as part of the Landing Docks Acquisition Project, included in Horizon 2 of the Revised AFP Modernization Program. The future LPDs are scheduled for delivery between 2026 and 2027 and are intended to expand the Philippine Navy’s amphibious assault, sealift, logistics, and humanitarian assistance capabilities.”
The Present State of the Philippine Navy
Both the LPDs themselves and their Turkish-made armaments would be a real boon for the capabilities of the Philippine Navy, especially in its efforts to deal with an increasingly belligerent Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). According to the World Directory of Modern Military Warships, the Philippine Navy currently has sixty-one units in its fleet, thus ranking it thirtieth out of forty national naval powers currently tracked by the website. The Philippine Navy’s most powerful warships are its two Jose Rizal-class frigates and its lone Conrado Yap (former South Korean Pohang-class) corvette.
Sarsilmaz SAR 127: Brief History and Specifications
The specific make and model of the Turkish machine gun being sold to the Philippine Navy is the SAR 127 MT, which is manufactured by Sarsılmaz Silah Sanayi A.Ş. (“Unshakable Arms Industries”). Founded in 1880 and headquartered in the Turkish city of Düzce—with a U.S. subsidiary located in Miami, Florida—Sarsilmaz is the largest small arms manufacturer in Turkey and the official pistol supplier and producer of many of the small arms for the Turkish National Police and the Turkish Armed Forces.
The SAR 127 is essentially a license-built version of America’s iconic Browning M2 “Ma Deuce” .50 caliber (12.7x9mm NATO) machine gun. Tech specs and vital stats are as follows:
- Rate of Fire: 500 to 600 rounds per minute
- Muzzle Velocity: 900 meters per second (2,952 feet per second)
- Maximum Effective Range: 1,830 meters (6,003 feet)
- Maximum Range: 6,800 meters (22,309 feet)
- Empty Weight: 38 kilograms (83.77 lbs.)
- Overall Length: 1,655 millimeters (65.157 inches)
- Barrel Length: 1,144 millimeters (45.039 inches)
It will be interesting to see if the Philippine Armed Forces will end up expanding its relationship with the Turkish arms industry by purchasing additional weapons systems down the road.
About the Author: Christian D. Orr
Christian D. Orr was previously a Senior Defense Editor for National Security Journal (NSJ) and 19FortyFive. He is a former Air Force Security Forces officer, Federal law enforcement officer, and private military contractor (with assignments worked in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kosovo, Japan, Germany, and the Pentagon). Chris holds a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Southern California (USC) and an M.A. in Intelligence Studies (concentration in Terrorism Studies) from American Military University (AMU). He has also been published in The Daily Torch, The Journal of Intelligence and Cyber Security, and Simple Flying. Last but not least, he is a Companion of the Order of the Naval Order of the United States (NOUS). If you’d like to pick his brain further, you can ofttimes find him at the Old Virginia Tobacco Company (OVTC) lounge in Manassas, Virginia, partaking of fine stogies and good quality human camaraderie.
Image: Tony Magdaraog / Shutterstock.com
