Levent Kenez/Stockholm
Turkish Chief of General Staff Gen. Metin Gürak visited the United Kingdom to conduct inspections at NATO’s Maritime Command (MARCOM) on August 10. During his visit, he also toured the Coningsby Air Base, where he inspected a Eurofighter jet, restarting discussions about Turkey’s plans to procure these aircraft, a deal that has been under consideration since 2022.
Eurofighter GmbH is a multinational consortium that oversees the design, production and upgrade of the Eurofighter Typhoon military jet. Established in 1986, the company’s headquarters are located in Hallbergmoos, Germany. Ownership is divided among the leading aerospace companies of the four partner nations: Airbus Defence and Space (46 percent), representing Germany, France and Spain; BAE Systems Military Air & Information (33 percent) from the United Kingdom; and Leonardo (21 percent) from Italy.
In November 2023 Turkey officially announced negotiations with Britain and Spain for the purchase of Typhoons. However, Germany, a key project partner, continues to oppose the sale of these aircraft to Turkey. According to reports in the Turkish media, Turkey has enlisted the UK’s help to overcome Germany’s veto.
Germany previously refused to approve the sale of Eurofighter Typhoons to Turkey, citing various reasons such as Turkey’s purchase of S-400 missiles from Russia; military operations against the People’s Protection Units (YPG), the military wing of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), in Syria; and delays in Sweden’s NATO membership approval. Last week Turkey unveiled its new air defense project, Steel Dome, which does not include the S-400 missiles. Additionally, Ankara approved Sweden’s NATO on January 23 and postponed its ground operation in northern Syria. However, drone strikes against YPG targets continue amid low-intensity clashes.
Germany had previously opposed the sale of aircraft to Saudi Arabia due to concerns over Saudi-led attacks in Yemen but reversed its decision in January.
The Turkish Air Force initially intends to acquire 40 Eurofighter jets with all of them expected to be sourced from the United Kingdom. However, if Germany approves the sale, the scope of the procurement could change
Aviation unions in Germany are supporting Turkey’s bid to purchase Eurofighter Typhoons, concerned that failing to finalize and sign these contracts could result in the loss of their specialized workforce.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on July 10 addressed a press conference in Ankara before departing for the NATO summit in Washington, which took place July 9-11. During the briefing Erdogan raised the issue of removing barriers to defense industry trade among allies, implicitly referring to Germany’s refusal to sell tank engines and Eurofighter jets to Turkey.
While on an official visit to Germany on November 17, 2023, Erdogan responded to a question during a press conference with Chancellor Olaf Scholz regarding the possibility of acquiring Typhoon jets from Germany, saying, “Whether Germany provides them or not, is Germany the only place in the entire world that produces warplanes? We can procure them from many other places.”
Erdogan’s remarks were interpreted as a continuation of the disagreement between the two countries. However, with Turkey’s potential acquisition of F-16s from the US, defense industry experts suggest that Turkey’s having an alternative may influence Germany’s stance on the Eurofighter issue and that Turkey’s potential purchase from American suppliers could influence the decision-making process in favor of European manufacturers. Ankara previously announced that even if it acquires the F-16s, it will purchase different jets to diversify its fleet. One reason for this is that in 2021, the US administration officially removed Turkey from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program due to Ankara’s purchase of the Russian S-400 missile system in 2017.
Meanwhile Turkey is pleased with its agreement with the United States for the procurement of Block-70 F-16 fighter jets and modernization kits, and the process is proceeding as planned, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler told Reuters on Monday.
“… [W]e hope the project will be completed smoothly until the last jet is delivered,” Guler said in a written response to Reuters’ questions. He also noted that officials from both NATO allies were continuing to discuss the details of the deal.
Military experts claim that Turkey’s air superiority over the Aegean Sea has declined due to the warplanes Greece has procured and ordered in recent years.
Turkey also aims to collaborate with the UK on its indigenous fighter jet project, the KAAN. Negotiations are ongoing for the procurement of engines from the UK for the initial versions of the KAAN aircraft.
