Turkish Aerospace (TUSAŞ)’s Hürjet advanced trainer and light combat aircraft prototype has reached a speed of Mach 0.9 at an altitude of 30000 ft. With Hürjet being developed for a maximum speed of Mach 1.4, the test is closer to the supersonic regime than the others, marking another milestone.
The speed specified translates to a speed of 272.8 m/s, considering that the speed of sound at 30000 ft is 303 m/s, lower than sea level at 340 m/s. Mach 0.9 is considered transonic speed in many cases where there is a drastic drag increase until the aircraft reaches the speed of sound. The lower air density at said altitude (2.67 times less than sea level) also causes performance losses. The flight test serves as a verification for Hürjet’s aerodynamic optimisations required to go through the transonic regime and eventually reach the supersonic speeds. Thus, the advanced trainer can be expected to achieve supersonic speeds in the next tests.
Hürjet has recently joined the Spanish tender for a new advanced trainer aircraft to replace the ageing F-5 jets. Turkiye’s trainer will compete with the KAI T-50, the Boeing T-7, and the Leonardo M-346. According to Turkish Aerospace General Manager Dr Mehmet Demiroğlu, Indonesia might show interest in aircraft. He also underlined that he is hopeful that Malaysia will reconsider the aircraft.
The aircraft will fly to the United Kingdom this weekend to be exhibited for the first time at Farnborough International Airshow. Testing transonic speed before the airshow will bring advantages to the discussion table as the most struggling test will be performed.
