Turkish Aerospace Readies for Next Step in Kaan Flight Tests

Turkish Aerospace is gearing up to begin test flights of the next two prototypes of its Kaan fifth-generation fighter this year as the company remains on target for delivery to the Turkish Air Force later in the decade, Turkish Aerospace president and CEO Mehmet Demiroğlu said Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters during the Farnborough International Airshow, Demiroğlu said the company has 10 GE F110 turbofans in stock in Ankara, Türkiye, for prototypes.

Plans call for Turkish Aerospace to buy 80 of the engines for serial production of the Mach 1.8 multirole aircraft. He added that the U.S. Congress granted export license approval for them on July 9. These engines are anticipated to fill the short-term needs until the domestically developed TEI TF-35000 is ready for service.

With serial production anticipated in the next two years, “We will have no issue receiving those engines in time to support our serial production,” he said.

Initial deliveries to the Turkish Air Force are still anticipated in 2028, Demiroğlu said, cautioning, “These are challenging programs, and we are hoping that we’ll keep that delivery time.”

As for the flights of the next two prototypes, he said the company is waiting for a few tests to be completed and anticipated that P1 would fly in a couple of months with P2 by the end of the year. “That’s our goal.”

Meanwhile, Demiroğlu confirmed that the T70 heavy utility helicopter program has fully restarted and that the company reached an agreement with Sikorsky at the beginning of the year for another 39 units—“and we received the export license…so, we don’t see any problem.” 

While the joint Sikorsky/Turkish Aerospace program—which launched more than a decade ago—suffered setbacks over U.S. sanctions and licensing issues after the initial deliveries, Turkish Aerospace made contract changes in consultation with Sikorsky, along with the U.S. and Turkish governments, Demiroğlu added. “We found a way, and now it is back in.”

Under the Turkish Utility Helicopter Program, Turkish Aerospace and Sikorsky are to produce up to 109 of the T70 Black Hawks based on the Sikorsky S-70i under a potential $3.5 billion program.

Meanwhile, Turkish Aerospace continues work on its own 19-passenger, 12,000-kg T925 utility helicopter developed in-house. Demiroğlu stressed that even as the T70 program continues, the T925 program is on the “full burner, not even a back burner.” He explained this is because T70 acquisition is filling current requirements, but in the early 2030s, many such helicopters in the Turkish Armed Forces will begin retiring.

Turkish Aerospace sees a need for more than 200 by 2040, he estimated. “T925 is going to fill that gap.” Demiroğlu also believes there will be export opportunities, with a demand for another 200.