DEFENSE NEWS - TAI Unveils its Projects for 2023 to the Press

Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) organized a visit to its facilities at the beginning of the year for Turkish defense journalists. The major projects of this aerospace and space company for 2023 were revealed on this occasion.

The first flight of the prototype of the Turkish national combat aircraft TF-X is scheduled for the end of the year. This GTU (Geliştirme Test Uçağı, development and test aircraft) will be powered by F110-GE-129E turbofan engines developed by General Electric. A “roll-out” ceremony (hangar exit for media presentation) of the GTU is planned for April, with the precise date of this event to be announced in March, possibly the 18th.

The construction of the 90th ANKA drone continues on the production lines where about twenty drones of this type are in various stages of assembly. The system integration work of the 70th and 80th drones is ongoing.

Regarding the first batch of 38 T-70 multirole helicopters (T-70 General Utility Helicopter) out of the 109 that will be manufactured in total, 12 will be delivered this year, including 3 for the General Directorate of Forestry under the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The Turkish Air Force received its first aircraft (the 5th in the production order) on January 11. The remaining helicopters of the first batch are scheduled for 2024, while SIKORSKY continues its discussions with U.S. authorities to obtain authorization to manufacture the second batch. Congressional approval will be mandatory in any case. The local Turkish share in the T-70 program is estimated to be between 90% and 95%.

The assembly of 2 T625 GÖKBEY light transport/utility helicopters is nearing completion, one of which is expected to be ready soon. 3 T625 GÖKBEY helicopters will be delivered this year to the General Command of the Gendarmerie.

Regarding the T129 ATAK and T929 ATAK-2 helicopters, 3 T129s in Phase-I version are being upgraded to Phase-II. The 86th of these aircraft is currently on the production line. To recall, the initial order was for 83 T129 ATAK helicopters under LEONARDO license, to which 3 more were added for the Ministry of Interior, 6 for the Philippines (4 already delivered), and 2 for an unnamed export client. The total number of T129 ATAK built to date is 74. For the T929 ATAK-2, the prototype’s fuselage is being manufactured by the Turkish subcontractor COŞKUNÖZ, while its engines are expected to be delivered in January. No delays have been announced for its first flight.

4 prototypes of the HÜRJET advanced jet trainer will be built. The manufacturing of the prototype, scheduled to fly on March 18, is ongoing.

TAI has expressed the desire to play an active role in the manufacturing of 40 F-16V Block 70 and the modernization of 79 F-16s (29 F-16 Block 50+ and 50 F-16 Block 40M) to Block 70 standard. Without prejudging the political decisions to be made in the United States, a delegation from LOCKHEED MARTIN has already conducted a study of TAI’s facilities as part of this project.

Information synthesized by General Officer in 2s of the French Air and Space Force, researcher at IRIS and Director of defense and security projects within Advantis.

Source: Defence Turkey, January 11, 2023