Speaking at the Committee on Plan and Budget, Turkish Minister of Defence Yaşar Güler signalled a possible change of strategy on F-35 fighters and F-16s.
During his speech, Güler gave an update regarding the U.S.’s stance on the delivery of F-35 fighter jets to Turkiye:
“After we developed the KAAN fighter jet, the U.S. officials have changed their mind regarding the F-35. They are now saying that they can deliver the jets. We re-sent our offer for F-35.”
In response to a member of the Turkish Grand National Assembly’s question on whether Turkiye will re-join the F-35 production line, Güler said:
“We insisted on our share of the production line being given back and sent our request for 40 F-35 fighter jets.”
In an exclusive interview, U.S. sources answering TurDef’s inquiry regarding the possibility of Turkiye returning to the F-35 JSF programme stated that Turkiye’s previous role as an essential industrial partner in the program, from producing central fuselages to being even a sole component supplier is acknowledged. The sources added that growing global demand for the F-35 could open room for renewed Turkish involvement.
When another member asked about the U.S.’s stance on the Russian S-400 long-range air defence system acquired by Turkiye, Güler’s response was:
“‘You will do this and that...’ we rejected all of it. Now, as long as it is in the place we agreed to, the U.S. doesn’t have any objections regarding S-400.”
Yaşar Güler made another important statement regarding the acquisition of 40 F-16 Block 70 fighters and 79 Block 70 kits for existing jets:
“The first payment of $1.4 billion has been made; we will acquire 40 F-16 Block 70 fighters. We have decided to drop the 79 modernisation kits. As TUSAŞ’s facilities can perform this modernisation, we have routed the modernisation work there. We will acquire about 40 aircraft with munitions for $6.5-7 billion.”
The statements declare that the modernisation of the F-16s will only consist of the Indigenous ÖZGÜR kit, which includes a revamp of avionics, MURAD 100-A AESA radar, and the integration of various Indigenous munitions (Gökdoğan and Gökhan BVRAAMs, Bozdoğan BVRAAM, Gezgin LACM...). The removal of kits has also greatly reduced the initially planned cost of F-16 Block 70’s. The approved budget was $23 billion.
