Tag: TAI

Turkey’s Indigenous Trainer Nears Maiden Flight

ANKARA — An indigenous basic trainer aircraft that Turkey designed and has been developing is going through a final round of tests before it makes its maiden flight in June, according to officials from its maker, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI).

TAI is manufacturing four prototypes of the Hurkus for a round of tests. The first prototype successfully went through engine tests in February, the second is being tested for static durability and cabin pressure, the third is being assembled, and the fourth will be tested for metal fatigue.

A total of 220 aviation experts are supporting the certification work for the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) CS 23 standards.

The two-seater Hurkus will be a trainer with a lifespan of 10,500 flight hours, or a 35-year service life. The turboprop aircraft has a 1,600 horsepower engine that can fly at an altitude of 10,577 meters at a maximum speed of 574 kilometers per hour.

Success on the Hurkus development would be a landmark achievement for Turkish industry and reduce dependence on foreign acquisitions. It is particularly important that the Hurkus comes after the first Turkish-made drone, the Anka, also developed by TAI, prepares for serial production.

The Hurkus program started after Turkey’s procurement agency, the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries, tasked the company with designing and developing a national trainer in March 2006.

The Hurkus will be equipped for day and night flying as well as basic pilot training, instrument flying, navigation training, weapons and formation training. The aircraft will have good visibility from both cockpits with a 50 degree down-view angle from the rear cockpit, ejection seats, an on-board oxygen generation system, an environmental control system, an anti-G system, and high shock absorbing landing gear for training missions.

The Turkish government has indicated that the aircraft is expected to attract export sales, possibly from Arab countries or countries with limited air force budgets.

The Hurkus will come in four variants. Hurkus-A: Basic version that has been certified with EASA according to CS-23 requirements. It is intended for the civilian market.

Hurkus-B: Advanced version with integrated avionics including a mission computer, and cockpit avionics layout similar to F-16 and F-35 fighters. The Turkish Army is considering an initial order for 15 aircraft.

Hurkus-C: An armed version for the close-air support role will have a maximum weapons load of 3,300 pounds. The Turkish Army has expressed interest in the Hurkus C to provide support for its attack helicopters.

Coast Guard version: TAI plans to offer another version of the Hurkus to support the Turkish Coast Guard’s maritime patrol activities. The aircraft’s back seat would be occupied by an operator for a forward looking infrared sensor.

via Turkey’s Indigenous Trainer Nears Maiden Flight | Defense News | defensenews.com.

April 24, 2013
Turkish defence industry aims high

By Justin Vela in Istanbul

Turkey is moving up in defence manufacturing with the commercial development of the ANKA, its first domestically-made drone (pictured).

It’s the product of an industry that’s largely state-owned but one that is expanding its $14bn-a-year revenues, and creating investment opportunities through privatisation. First for a likely stock market launch is ANKA’s maker, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), the second largest company in the sector.

Like most Turkish defence contractors, TAI is a subsidiary of the country’s Armed Forces Foundation (TSKGV). It is expected to be listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) later this year, according to Arda Mevlutoglu, a Turkish defence analyst, who says the pioneering sale could pave the way for others.

“Going [public] is part of a wider strategic plan to make TAI a global player,” Mevlutoglu said. “If the formula works well, it may be applied to other major contractors as well.”

TAI didn’t respond to a request for comment in time for publication. The ANKA unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is one of TAI’s latest developments, with a 56-foot wingspan, a top speed of 75 knots per hour, and a maximum altitude of 30,000 feet.

The Anka completed military testing in late January and is set for serial production. Turkey aims to export the drone around the region, with the Egyptian government reportedly signing an agreement last November to buy 10 of the drones.

On March 6, Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul showed the ANKA to Jordan’s King Abdullah, along with other military products, such as the T-129 “ATAK” combat helicopter, a $3.2bn joint project between TAI and the Anglo-Italian helicopter company AgustaWestland.

In 2012, Turkey exported about $1.2bn worth of defence equipment, a 35.7 per cent rise over 2011. The main export destinations were the US ($490m), United Arab Emirates ($101m), and Saudi Arabia ($99m). The industry is aiming for $2bn in exports by 2016.

Mevlutoglu noted that Turkey’s Undersecretary for Defense Industries (SSM) has a regional office in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia “for overseeing and coordinating export activities in the region.”

In February 2013, Turkish missile manufacturer Roketsan signed a $196.2m deal to provide the UAE military with its Cirit laser-guided rocket system. This is the first foreign sale of Cirit, which is billed as a relatively low-cost precision strike system equipped with 70mm rockets that have a range of eight kilometers.

“Turkey is trying to develop low-cost highly reliable weapons that aren’t as expensive as the US systems, but that match the capabilities,” said Aaron Stein, a researcher at Istanbul’s Center for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies. “That allows Turkey to fill a niche market. It will take time, but…it is state policy to do this.”

Roketsan is also partnered with US-based arms manufacturer Lockheed Martin to produce canisters for its PAC-3 missile.

Other Turkish weapons include the Altay tank, a $400m project produced by Otokar, a subsidiary of Turkey’s Koc Holding, the country’s largest listed conglomerate. South Korea’s Hyundai Rotem and Turkey’s Roketsan and Aselsan, a publicly-listed military communications and electronics company, are among the project’s sub-contractors. Serial production is expected to start in 2015.

Otokar also produces the Cobra armored vehicle, which is currently exported to a number of countries around the world, including Azerbaijan, Bahrain, and Pakistan.

Turkey’s desire to foster its domestic defence industry dates back to the 1980′s and is partly aimed at decreasing dependence on buying “off the shelf” military goods from the US, Stein said.

“It’s a platform for Turkey to develop high-technology exports.”

The increased exports will also help ease Turkey’s current account deficit, which is expected to be 7-8 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2013.

However, the increase in arms exports has raised some concerns about weapons proliferation in the region. The US Congress has long blocked the sale of drones to Turkey, citing incidents such as the accidental killing of 40 Kurdish civilians from the southern town of Uludere by the Turkish Air Force of in December 2011.

With the ANKA headed for serial production, TAI has already begun developing an armed version of the drone called the ANKA +A that will be outfitted with Cirit missiles from Roketsan.

Stein noted that the increased weapons exports could contradict Turkey’s stated goal of preventing weapons proliferation in the Middle East, but ultimately sales were too small to alter the balance of power in the region.

He says: “Sometimes commercial interests supersede non-proliferation commitments. Sometimes the two are at odds with each other. It depends which Turkey chooses.”

via Turkish defence industry aims high | beyondbrics.

March 9, 2013
Turkey to co-produce pilotless Navy copters

ÜMİT ENGİNSOY

ANKARA- Hürriyet Daily News

A new program for the co-production of unmanned helicopters worth hundreds of millions of dollars has been launched by military and procurement authorities to boost Turkey’s naval intelligence capabilities, a procurement official said on the weekend.

The Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM), Turkey’s procurement agency, will formally start the program soon. Requests for proposal will likely be released before the end of the year, the official said on condition of anonymity. “The competition will be open to foreign bidders, but they will have to agree to work with a Turkish prime contractor,” the official said.

The local prime contractor will most likely be Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) based near Ankara, industry sources said. Last December TAI successfully performed test flights for the Sivrisinek (Mosquito), its first small unmanned helicopter prototype, which is equipped with the Cirit (Javelin), a rocket developed by Turkish missile maker Roketsan.

The co-production program will involve an initial batch of up to 30 unmanned helicopters, all to be acquired by the Navy. Initial specification for the planned unmanned platform is a range of 180 kilometers and a flight time of up to 10 hours, procurement officials said. In its first test flight, the Sivrisinek was airborne for 90 minutes. According to planned contract specifications, the unmanned helicopters must perform vertical take-off and landing since they will be operated from naval platforms. The unmanned helicopters will initially be deployed on a landing platform dock (LPD) Turkey plans to acquire, but in later stages of the program, they will operate using Turkish corvettes and frigates as bases.

UAVs either self-directed or remote controlled

An unmanned or pilotless aircraft (UAV) can function either by remote control by a navigator or pilot, or autonomously as a self-directing entity. In the military most types are used for surveillance purposes, while the U.S. General Atomics’ MQ-9 Reaper is an armed version.

Most Army and Air Force drones are pilotless aircraft with large wings as they utilize long runways for take-off and landing. But since naval platforms usually lack runways, UAVs used by the Navy are pilotless helicopters. As there is no risk of loss of personnel, UAVs can be used for risky missions. Turkey’s UAV efforts mainly are related to the country’s fight against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants. In the 1990s, Turkey utilized 10 platforms bought from the U.S. General Atomics. In recent years, such platforms were obtained from Israel. Turkey presently has in its inventory nine IAI Heron UAVs for anti-terrorism surveillance but plans to buy a small number of MQ-1 Predator drones from the United States. Meanwhile, its own program to produce the Anka drone has faced technical problems.

via Turkey to co-produce pilotless Navy copters – Hurriyet Daily News.

October 18, 2011
China to launch Turkey’s first intelligence satellite in December

The Göktürk satellite will also be used for monitoring civilian activities such as control of forestland, tracking illegal construction.

China will launch Turkey’s first intelligence satellite, Göktürk-2, for $20 million since Turkey lacks the required technology to launch the satellite. Göktürk-2, which will be capable of detecting the movements of objects smaller than even one square meter, will help capture terrorists infiltrating Turkish borders.

The optical camera for the satellite has been bought from South Korea, while all the other parts have been produced and manufactured in Turkey. Göktürk is expected to be launched in December or in early 2012.

The Göktürk satellite will also be used for monitoring civilian activities such as control of forestland, tracking illegal construction, rapid assessment of damage after natural disasters, determination of agricultural boundaries and geographical data gathering. The project also aims to furnish national industries with the capability to design and integrate satellite systems and run tests on them here in Turkey.

Turkish defense industry companies and research centers Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), Aselsan, the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) and Turksat will participate in all phases of the project. The project consists of the construction of an electro-optic satellite system that will be put into orbit, a fixed land station and a mobile land station.

However, it is said that Israel is trying to block the launch of Göktürk-2, fearing that Turkey will be able to monitor Israel’s territory.

Cihan news agency

via China to launch Turkey’s first intelligence satellite in December | General | World Bulletin.

June 15, 2011
China to launch Turkey’s first intelligence satellite in December

China will launch Turkey’s first intelligence satellite, Göktürk-2, for $20 million since Turkey lacks the required technology to launch the satellite. Göktürk-2, which will be capable of detecting the movements of objects smaller than even one square meter, will help capture terrorists infiltrating Turkish borders.

The optical camera for the satellite has been bought from South Korea, while all the other parts have been produced and manufactured in Turkey. Göktürk is expected to be launched in December or in early 2012.

The Göktürk satellite will also be used for monitoring civilian activities such as control of forestland, tracking illegal construction, rapid assessment of damage after natural disasters, determination of agricultural boundaries and geographical data gathering. The project also aims to furnish national industries with the capability to design and integrate satellite systems and run tests on them here in Turkey.

Turkish defense industry companies and research centers Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), Aselsan, the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) and Turksat will participate in all phases of the project. The project consists of the construction of an electro-optic satellite system that will be put into orbit, a fixed land station and a mobile land station.

However, it is said that Israel is trying to block the launch of Göktürk-2, fearing that Turkey will be able to monitor Israel’s territory.

Cihan news agency

June 15, 2011
First F-16 produced in Turkey delivered to THK

Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) has delivered the first Falcon (F-16) fighter jet produced in Turkey to the Turkish Air Forces (THK).

According to the information Today’s Zaman received from Ministry of Defense sources, TAI recently delivered one of the 50 planned F-16 fighter jets to the THK. The US Congress on Oct. 15, 2006, approved the program to assemble new planes to be carried out at the TAI facility, while the engines of the fighter jet will be produced at the TUSAŞ Engine Industries (TEI) factory in the province of Eskişehir. While the first F-16 fully produced in Turkey was recently delivered, the source said the other 49 F-16s will be completed by the end of 2012.

Turkey chose the F-16 to use in its air force in the early 1980s and TAI was established soon after the decision. Between 1987 and 1995, TAI assembled 152 planes in the first phase of the F-16 project. The second phase took place between 1995 and 1999, during which 80 planes were assembled. Turkey received its first overseas order for F-16 planes from the Egyptian Air Force in 1993 and assembled 46 planes for them. TAI recently upgraded the first of 17 planes for Jordan’s air force in the context of a modernization program.

F-16 fighter jets can reach a top speed of 2,124 kilometers per hour, twice the speed of sound. They have a high level of maneuverability even at low speeds and can accelerate or decelerate in a very short time. The planes can fly 860 kilometers with a full fuel tank when fully armed. The F-16 can detect even planes flying at very low altitudes with its powerful radar system.

Meanwhile, THK has also recently agreed to buy 30 advanced F-16 Block 50 fighter jets from the US company Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. These new F-16s are an upgraded version of the older ones. The fuel tanks, which were outside the body of the old F-16s, are now inside the body of the Block 50 type jets. It has also newer guns and electronic systems, the source said, adding that value of the agreement on buying Block 50 fighter jets from the US is estimated at around $1.7 billion.

via zaman

May 24, 2011