TUSAŞ's Hürjet advanced trainer has put its gear on the ground for the Egypt International Airshow (EIA)in which it will participate.
The airshow in Egypt will mark the first away-from-home demonstration of the new player in the advanced trainer market. Previously, Hürjet was planned to perform in FIA 2024, but the aircraft had to fly to the U.K. and make several technical stops.
It was said that pilots wanted to have either a chasing aircraft or complete some tests for such flight, which was the propeller-driven Hürkuş at the time. The said tests had to be completed before the journey to fly alone. They were scheduled before the airshow but postponed due to harsh weather conditions in Ankara. Hürjet also competes for Spain's advanced trainer tender against Boeing-Saab T-7A Red Hawk, KAI T-50, and Leonardo M-346. Spain has started the tender to replace the ageing F-5s reserved for the trainer role.
In 2024, the aircraft achieved important milestones such as performing high-G manoeuvres and flying near the speed of sound at Mach 0.9. Additionally, Hürjet made a test flight in formation with the stealthy ANKA-3 UCAV.
In Turkish service, Hürjet is expected to take on advanced trainer (T-38 replacement), aerobatic aircraft (F-5 replacement), light combat aircraft, and carrier-based aircraft (Onboard MUGEM) roles in different configurations. The light combat aircraft variant will use a variant of the MURAD AESA radar family, air-to-ground/air munitions, with a payload capacity of 2.7 tonnes.
