TUSAŞ General Manager announced: Demand for HÜRJET from overseas countries.

The General Manager of Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc. (TUSAŞ), Mehmet Demiroğlu, stated that they have made progress in discussions with an overseas customer for HÜRJET, which has significant demand from Europe, North Africa, Central Asia, and Turkish republics.

Speaking in Kocaeli, where he came to attend the Defense Industry Kocaeli Provincial Meeting and Match4Industry B2B Meetings, Demiroğlu recalled that the second prototype of Turkey's first national jet training aircraft, HÜRJET, successfully completed its first flight.

He noted that the first prototype flew in April last year and explained that the second prototype has a configuration for both light attack and training aircraft.

HÜRJET WILL BE USED IN THE AIR FORCE IN 2026

Demiroğlu pointed out that the second prototype is a slightly improved configuration, saying, "Because there are many lessons we learned from the previous prototype. There were areas that needed to be corrected. The pilots also commented, 'Yes, this has become better, the aircraft has come closer to the aircraft we wanted.' It was a nice comment. This is our second aircraft, but next year we will have a few more, and then by 2026, we hope to deliver our training aircraft to our Air Force. We are working with all our might for that." he said.

Demiroğlu stated that these projects are prototypes that develop step by step, and they will continue to integrate munitions such as air-to-ground and air-to-air for both the training aircraft and the light attack aircraft.

"HÜRJET WILL BE ONE OF OUR BEST-SELLING PLATFORMS"

Demiroğlu mentioned that they have started the mass production of HÜRJET and that they will deliver 13 of the current 17 orders to the Turkish Air Force.

Expressing that they see this as a starting point, Demiroğlu said, "It is expected to rise to 100, currently only for the needs of our Air Force... Right now, there is significant demand for our HÜRJET in Europe, North Africa, Central Asia, and Turkish republics. Our discussions with them have progressed quite a bit. In fact, we have made progress with a customer that we can call overseas, with whom we have been in talks for a long time. We will share these as the time comes and the situation becomes clearer." he stated.

Demiroğlu expressed that they are very pleased and optimistic about HÜRJET, saying, "It will really be one of our best-selling platforms for both our country and TUSAŞ."

"WE ARE NOT JUST SELLING AIRCRAFT"

Demiroğlu explained that they are the main integrator for HÜRJET, saying, "When we sell an aircraft, we are not just selling an aircraft. Not only TUSAŞ, but also ASELSAN, Roketsan, HAVELSAN are included, there are spare parts, there are subsystems. In essence, hundreds of our companies are selling a part or a subsystem. When I talk to our subcontractor, I use the expression, 'Our job is to make you fly.' Both to really make you fly and to bring you to the global arena." he stated.

LOCAL COMPANIES ARE ENTERING THE GLOBAL ARENA

Demiroğlu emphasized that being able to say "I have a part" in HÜRJET, GÖKBEY, KAAN, or any platform is a tremendous privilege for their companies, and he concluded his speech as follows: Because you are entering the global arena, and the global players start asking, 'Wait a minute, can I work here too?' and you are not limited to just Turkey, you become capable of selling goods to the world. This is a success of this ecosystem, not just TUSAŞ's.