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Turkey F-35 order on the way
Turkey will likely place a purchase order for a first batch of six F-35 next-generation aircraft before year end, but disputes continue among parties.
Turkey plans to buy the U.S.-led F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Lightning II, a stealth multirole fighter jet, to meet most future needs for its Air Force’s next-generation fighter planes.
It has voiced willingness to buy around 100 F-35s over the next 15 years, but as the program’s limited production stage begins, it so far has not formally committed to the program. To do so, it needs to submit a purchase order for a first batch of six aircraft before the end of the year.
“We will have talks [with the Americans] in the months ahead in an effort to resolve some matters. If we manage to reach an agreement, we expect to order the first six aircraft this year,” Murad Bayar, chief of the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries, or SSM, the government’s defense procurement agency, recently told the Hürriyet Daily News. “We expect to reach a deal.”
The F-35, whose production is led by the U.S.’s Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest defense company, will be built by a consortium of nine countries, including Turkey. Other members of the consortium are Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia, Norway and Denmark.
A few years ago, when Turkey’s purchase of around 100 jets was expected to cost around $10 billion or $11 billion, Turkish companies grabbed project work around $5 billion, meeting nearly the half of the expense. But the unit price has gone up considerably over the past two years, exceeding $13 billion.
Now Turkish companies seek to raise their share to more than $6 billion to stay near the planned 50 percent figure. In addition, the United States remains reluctant to share millions of lines of source codes that make the plane’s flight possible. Turkey, however, wants access to part of these source codes related to operational needs.
Placing an order for the first six aircraft before the end of this year mostly is related to early deliveries, around 2014 and 2015, and a failure to do so would not mean the end of the world. “If we don’t place the first purchase order by year end, that would not necessarily mean that we have failed to agree, it may mean that we at this point may not have the finances,” Bayar said. “Anyway, we hope that none of this happens.”
Debut F-35 order on the way, disputes remain - Hurriyet Daily News
Turkey will likely place a purchase order for a first batch of six F-35 next-generation aircraft before year end, but disputes continue among parties.
Turkey plans to buy the U.S.-led F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Lightning II, a stealth multirole fighter jet, to meet most future needs for its Air Force’s next-generation fighter planes.
It has voiced willingness to buy around 100 F-35s over the next 15 years, but as the program’s limited production stage begins, it so far has not formally committed to the program. To do so, it needs to submit a purchase order for a first batch of six aircraft before the end of the year.
“We will have talks [with the Americans] in the months ahead in an effort to resolve some matters. If we manage to reach an agreement, we expect to order the first six aircraft this year,” Murad Bayar, chief of the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries, or SSM, the government’s defense procurement agency, recently told the Hürriyet Daily News. “We expect to reach a deal.”
The F-35, whose production is led by the U.S.’s Lockheed Martin, the world’s largest defense company, will be built by a consortium of nine countries, including Turkey. Other members of the consortium are Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia, Norway and Denmark.
A few years ago, when Turkey’s purchase of around 100 jets was expected to cost around $10 billion or $11 billion, Turkish companies grabbed project work around $5 billion, meeting nearly the half of the expense. But the unit price has gone up considerably over the past two years, exceeding $13 billion.
Now Turkish companies seek to raise their share to more than $6 billion to stay near the planned 50 percent figure. In addition, the United States remains reluctant to share millions of lines of source codes that make the plane’s flight possible. Turkey, however, wants access to part of these source codes related to operational needs.
Placing an order for the first six aircraft before the end of this year mostly is related to early deliveries, around 2014 and 2015, and a failure to do so would not mean the end of the world. “If we don’t place the first purchase order by year end, that would not necessarily mean that we have failed to agree, it may mean that we at this point may not have the finances,” Bayar said. “Anyway, we hope that none of this happens.”
Debut F-35 order on the way, disputes remain - Hurriyet Daily News
