F-16: The Next Step Forward
Approved a $23 billion package of F-16s provides crucial progress for the fleet enhancement of the TuRAF. The focus shifts to the next steps.
USA News
Analysis
Air
Bilateral Relations
Türkiye Receives Congress Approval to Procure F-16s
Turkiye's $23 billion new F-16 Viper procurement and modernisation kit procurement request from the United States received approval from Congress.
Air
Expo and Air Show
Boeing Markets F-15EX to Saudia Arabia
Boeing markets F-15EX Eagle II aircraft to Saudia Arabia while the Kingdom tries to choose between Eurofighter and Rafale.
Air
The U.S. Army Cancels FARA Helicopter Programme
Due to budget constraints and changes in the battlefield, the U.S. Army has cancelled the future attack-reconnaissance helicopter programme FARA.
Unmanned Systems
General Atomics Reveals XQ-67A UCAV
As part of the USAF’s Off-board Sensing Station programme (OBSS), General Atomics (GA-ASI) has developed a new jet-powered UCAV named XQ-67A.
Modernisation
E/W
TuRAF Goes for Northrop Grumman's IVEWS E/W Systems
Turkish Air Force chooses Northrop Grumman's AN/ALQ-257 Integrated Viper Electronic Warfare Suite (IVEWS) for Turkish f-16s.
Unmanned Systems
Sensors
Poland Brings Early Warning to Aerostat for $1.2 Billion
The State Department has approved a possible FMS to Poland of Airspace and Surface Radar Reconnaissance aerostat systems for approximately $1.2 billion.
Air
Bilateral Relations
U.S. Senator Seeks to Block F-16 Sale to Turkiye
A Republican Senator for Kentucky, Rand Paul, has submitted a joint resolution opposing the proposed sale of military equipment to Turkiye on Monday.
Expo and Air Show
Unmanned Systems
Raytheon Displays Coyote Block 2+ C-UAS Interceptor
Raytheon has displayed its jet-powered Coyote Block 2+ C-UAS Interceptor in the “World Defense Show” (WDS) 2024.
Air
U.S. hit Iranian targets with B-1B Lancer
U.S. retaliatory strikes in Syria and Iraq on Iranian targets were conducted with B-1B Lancer strategic bombers and A-10C Thunderbolt II CAS Aircraft.
Air
Aside F-16, Turkiye is still Interested in Eurofighter
Turkiye is still interested in the Eurofighter Typhoon despite progress in purchasing F-16 Vipers from the U.S.
Air
Ammunition
Bilateral Relations
U.S. Strikes 85 Iranian Targets with 125 Guided Munitions
U.S. Central Command stated that its forces conducted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against Iran’s IRGC Quds Force.
Bilateral Relations
Air
U.S. Retalites Iran-backed Militias
The U.S. launched strikes against Iran-backed militias in Syria and Iraq in response to drone attacks.
Weapon / Missile
Netherlands Acquires Hellfire
The State Department has approved an FMS to the Netherlands of Hellfire Missiles and related equipment for an estimated cost of $150 million.
Global Defence Trend Brief
- 15:00 NATO pushes higher air and missile defence capacity targets - NATO members are under growing pressure to expand air and missile defence inventories, command netwo...
- 15:00 US Army deepens integrated air defence networking efforts - The US Army continues integrating radars, launchers and command systems into common battle networks...
- 15:00 Europe expands ammunition and missile production capacity - European governments are increasingly funding new ammunition and missile production lines to rebuild...
- 15:00 China strengthens multi-domain reconnaissance architecture - China is continuing to link satellites, drones, maritime patrol assets and ground-based sensors into...
- 15:00 Japan accelerates hardening and dispersal of military infrastructure - Japan is investing in hardened facilities, dispersed ammunition storage and rapid reinforcement logi...
- 15:00 Counter-drone procurement shifts toward affordable layered defence - Military organisations are increasingly prioritising combinations of jamming, interceptor drones, gu...
- 15:00 Autonomous underwater vehicles gain prominence in seabed security - Navies are expanding the use of autonomous underwater vehicles for surveillance, mine countermeasure...
- 15:00 Hypersonic defence drives demand for persistent tracking networks - Defence agencies are accelerating work on layered radar and satellite tracking architectures designe...
- 15:00 Military space resilience shifts toward proliferated constellations - Armed forces are increasingly favouring larger constellations of smaller satellites rather than a fe...
- 15:00 Industrial surge capacity becomes a core defence benchmark - Governments are placing greater emphasis on production scalability, secure supply chains and the abi...
- 12:00 Italy gives conditional approval to Leonardo-Baykar drone venture - Reuters reported that Italy has conditionally approved the Leonardo-Baykar joint venture to produce...
- 12:00 USNI analyses Türkiye’s growing defence-industrial ambition - The U.S. Naval Institute’s USNI News published a field report and analysis on Türkiye’s expanding de...
- 12:00 Reuters tracks Türkiye’s push to double defence exports - Reuters reported that Turkish officials want to double defence exports within two years after total...
- 12:00 Breaking Defense spotlights Turkish one-way attack systems at SAHA 2026 - Breaking Defense reported that Turkish companies used SAHA 2026 to unveil multiple one-way attack sy...
- 12:00 Defense News highlights ASELSAN’s autonomous warfare concept - Defense News reported that ASELSAN used SAHA 2026 to present a future warfare vision centred on auto...
- 12:00 Le Monde examines Türkiye’s expanding defence footprint in Mali - Le Monde reported that Türkiye has become an increasingly important security partner for Mali throug...
- 12:00 French strategic study identifies Türkiye as a rising European supplier - The Fondation pour la Recherche Stratégique assessed Türkiye as one of the most notable new entrants...
- 12:00 Middle East Forum analyses Baykar’s expansion into Europe - A Middle East Forum analysis argued that Baykar’s growing presence in Europe shows how production ca...
- 12:00 Jerusalem Post highlights Baykar’s export-heavy revenue model - The Jerusalem Post reported that Baykar generated roughly $1.8 billion in drone exports in 2024 and...
- 12:00 Foreign defence coverage keeps focus on KAAN prototype timeline - International defence reporting circulated this month continued to highlight Turkish Aerospace’s tar...
- 09:00 NATO pushes higher air and missile defence capacity targets - NATO members are under growing pressure to expand air and missile defence inventories, command netwo...
- 09:00 US Army deepens integrated air defence networking efforts - The US Army continues integrating radars, launchers and command systems into common battle networks...
- 09:00 Europe expands ammunition and missile production capacity - European governments are increasingly funding new ammunition and missile production lines to rebuild...
- 09:00 China strengthens multi-domain reconnaissance architecture - China is continuing to link satellites, drones, maritime patrol assets and ground-based sensors into...
- 09:00 Japan accelerates hardening and dispersal of military infrastructure - Japan is investing in hardened facilities, dispersed ammunition storage and rapid reinforcement logi...
- 09:00 Counter-drone procurement shifts toward affordable layered defence - Military organisations are increasingly prioritising combinations of jamming, interceptor drones, gu...
- 09:00 Autonomous underwater vehicles gain prominence in seabed security - Navies are expanding the use of autonomous underwater vehicles for surveillance, mine countermeasure...
- 09:00 Hypersonic defence drives demand for persistent tracking networks - Defence agencies are accelerating work on layered radar and satellite tracking architectures designe...
- 09:00 Military space resilience shifts toward proliferated constellations - Armed forces are increasingly favouring larger constellations of smaller satellites rather than a fe...
- 09:00 Industrial surge capacity becomes a core defence benchmark - Governments are placing greater emphasis on production scalability, secure supply chains and the abi...
