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Turkey to soon decide on indigenous fighter jet
Turkey's top panel for overseeing major defense procurement decisions will convene "sooner rather than later" to discuss the country's ambitious program for the design, development and production of an indigenous fighter jet, dubbed the TF-X, sources have said, Hurriyet Daily News reported.The Defense Industry Executive Committee, chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, will discuss the fighter program at its first meeting, according to defense sources. Although there is not yet any scheduled meeting, officials say a gathering "looks likely in the first quarter of the year" - or, in other words, before the March 30 local elections. For the TF-X, Turkey has been receiving "mentoring" from Sweden's Saab, maker of the JAS 39 Gripen. The Turkish program involves the design, development and production of a "national" fighter jet, and Saab has been under contract for "pre-conceptual design work." Last year, Turkey agreed to buy design tools from the company. Turkey aims at a maiden flight for its own fighter aircraft in 2023, the centennial of the country's foundation. Officials are hoping that production will commence in 2021, and deliveries to the Air Force are planned for between 2025 and 2035. The aircraft is expected to remain in service until 2060. In its present phase, the TF-X exists in three distinct conceptual forms. The foremost favored by the Air Force is a single-engine airframe with blended wing-to-fuselage lines, a forward set single-seat cockpit and conventional main- and tail-wing appendages.
Posted by: Steve White 2014-01-28 |
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