Turkish Aerospace is seeing an opportunity for its Hürjet advanced jet trainer (AJT) to steal some ground on one of its key rivals: the Boeing-Saab T-7 Red Hawk, which in 2018 was selected by the US Air Force (USAF) as its AJT replacement for the more-than-half-a-century-old T-38 Talon.
“We have noticed the delay in the T-7 programme, and we see a chance to be able to catch up,” Professor Atilla Doğan, executive vice president for aircraft programmes at Turkish Aerospace, told ESD at the Paris Air Show on 19 June 2023.
“We are hoping to offer the Hürjetto the international market before the T-7,” he added.
While the T-7 made its first flight on 20 December 2016, the Hürjet, Turkey’s first indigenously produced, supersonic-capable jet aircraft, achieved its maiden flight on 25 April 2023. However, the T-7 programme has suffered a number of delays of late. Most recently the USAF postponed a Milestone C production decision on the T-7, expected by late 2023, until February 2025 and is not expecting an initial operational capability with the aircraft before the spring of 2027.
“For the customer an important question is ‘How soon can you deliver?’ said Doğan. “There seems to be an opportunity for us.”
Since it first took to the air on 25 April the Hürjet has now conducted 11 flights, said Doğan, adding that in the last two or three flight the aircraft had retracted its landing gear, allowing it to reach higher speeds and explore more of its flight envelope.
Turkish Aerospace is currently under contract with the Turkish government to provide two Hürjet prototypes and 16 pre-production aircraft: four by 2025 and 12 by the end of 2028. However, the company is in discussions with the Turkish government with regard to increasing this order to more than 16 aircraft and is in “serious discussions” with around five or six other potential customers, Doğan told ESD.
Meanwhile, Turkish Aerospace’s Kaan future fighter programme (previously known as TF-X), “is moving very well”, said Doğan. The system requirements review for the aircraft has been completed, he noted, and its preliminary design review is in the process of being closed.
Turkish Aerospace had hoped that the Kaan, which conducted its first taxi trials on 16 March 2023, would make its first flight in 2023: the centenary year for the founding of modern Turkey. However, Doğan said on 19 June that the company hoped to have the aircraft flying “within a year from now”.
Peter Felstead
