Former BMC CEO Murat Yalçıntaş has written a detailed account of the Altay main battle tank programme, one of the most debated defence projects in Türkiye’s recent industrial history. Published by Turkuvaz Kitap under the title “Yeni Altay’ın Bilinmeyen Hikayesi” (The Unknown Story of the New Altay), the 486-page book presents the author’s perspective on the industrial and political challenges surrounding the programme.
Yalçıntaş, who previously served as CEO of BMC and later became CEO of OYAK, describes the book as an attempt to present a “case study” of the Altay programme. In the foreword he notes that the work seeks to answer several questions: what happened during the process, why events unfolded as they did, and what lessons can be drawn from the experience.
The book combines Yalçıntaş’s first-hand observations during his roughly 30-month tenure as BMC’s chief executive with accounts from other figures involved in the programme. According to the author, the aim is not only to recount events but also to shed light on aspects of the Altay project that remained unclear to the public and even to parts of the defence industry.
Completed in December 2025, the manuscript was shared with defence media in March 2026 ahead of broader circulation. The publication arrives at a time when the Altay programme continues to attract significant attention due to its long development timeline, complex industrial structure and strategic importance for Türkiye’s armoured capabilities.
OYAK — the Turkish Armed Forces Assistance and Pension Fund — is a supplementary occupational pension institution established to provide additional benefits to its members in areas such as retirement, disability and death. Its membership includes personnel from the Turkish Armed Forces, the Gendarmerie General Command and the Coast Guard Command, as well as civilians who join voluntarily under the provisions of the relevant law.
With roughly 470,000 members, OYAK has evolved into one of Türkiye’s major investment groups, operating across multiple industrial sectors. The organisation previously owned ING Oyak Bank, which was sold to ING Group in 2007.
