Turkish Aerospace Inc. ( tr, Türk Havacılık ve Uzay Sanayi A.Ş., TUSAŞ) is the center of technology in design, development, manufacturing, integration of aerospace systems, modernization and after sales support in
Turkey.
Located in
Ankara, the Turkish Aerospace production plant covers an area of 5 million square meters with an industrial facility of 150,000 square meters under its roof. The company has a modern aircraft facility furnished with high technology machinery and equipment that provide extensive manufacturing capabilities ranging from parts manufacturing to aircraft assembly, flight tests and delivery.
As of 2010, Turkish Aerospace employs over 1500 engineers, of whom approximately 850 are research and development engineers working in military research projects.
Projects

TAI's experience includes the licensed production of General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon jets, CASA/IPTN CN-235 light transport/maritime patrol/surveillance aircraft, SIAI-Marchetti SF.260 trainers, Cougar AS-532 search and rescue (SAR), combat search and rescue (CSAR) and utility helicopters as well as the design and development of Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), target drones and agricultural aircraft.
TAI's core business also includes modernization, modification and systems integration programs and after sales support of both fixed and rotary wing military and commercial aircraft that are in the inventory of Turkey and its allies.
Turkish Aerospace Industries' (TAI's)
Hurkus basic trainer aircraft has been granted air worthiness type certification, the company announced at the 2016 Farnborough International Airshow.
Major programs
* Electronic warfare retrofit and structural modifications on
Turkish Air Force (TuAF) F-16s.
*MLU, Falcon-Up and Falcon Star Modifications on the
Royal Jordanian Air Force
The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF; ar, سلاح الجو الملكي الأردني, Silāḥ ul-Jawu al-Malakī 'al-Urdunī) is the aerial warfare branch of the Jordanian Armed Forces.
History
Early days
Jordan gained independence in 19 ...
(RJAF) F-16s,
*Modifications of 41
F-16A/B Block 15 aircraft of the
Pakistan Air Force to
F-16AM/BM Block 15 MLU standard.
*Modification of the S-2E Tracker Maritime Patrol Aircraft into Fire Fighting Aircraft
*
CN-235 and Black Hawk modifications for the Turkish Special Forces
*Modification of
CN-235 platforms for MPA/MSA missions for the
Turkish Navy and
Coast Guard
*Modification and modernization of
Eurocopter AS 532,
*Glass Cockpit Retrofit of
S-70 helicopters,
*Conversion of B737-700 aircraft
AEW&C aircraft,
*Avionics modernization of C-130 aircraft for the Turkish Air Force (TuAF),
* Production and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) of the center fuselage of
Joint Strike Fighter F-35 aircraft,
*Participating in the design and development of the
A400M military transport and tanker aircraft,
*Avionics modernization of T-38 aircraft for the TuAF,
*License production of the attack helicopter
Agusta A129 Mangusta as
T-129 for the
Turkish Armed Forces (TAF).
*Design, development and production of
TAI Hürkuş (Turkish Primary and Basic Training Aircraft) with
EASA CS-23 certification.
*Design, development and production of
Anka unmanned aerial vehicle for the TuAF.
Turkish Aerospace /
TUSAS produced 46 F-16s for the Egyptian Air Force between 1993 and 1995 under the agreement signed between the Governments of
Turkey and the Arab Republic of Egypt. A contract to produce 46 Block 40 F-16C/D's for the Egyptian Air Force was placed with TUSAS Aerospace Industries (TAI) of Turkey. 34 of them will be F-16C's, 12 will be F-16D's. This was carried out under the auspices of the ''Peace Vector IV'' program, and marked the first sale of a foreign-built Fighting Falcon to a third-party nation in the history of the F-16 program.
TAI is engaged in manufacturing
aerostructures for fixed and rotary wing, military and commercial aircraft for worldwide customers. TAI is in various partnership arrangements with
AgustaWestland,
Airbus,
Alenia Aermacchi,
Boeing,
IAI
, abbreviated , is a Japanese martial art that emphasizes being aware and capable of quickly drawing the sword and responding to sudden attacks.Christensen, Karen and Allen Guttmann et.al (2001) ''International Encyclopedia of Women and Sports ...
,
Lockheed Martin
The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
,
Northrop Grumman,
MD Helicopters,
Sikorsky Sikorsky or Sikorski may refer to:
* Sikorsky (comics), a Marvel Comics character
* Sikorsky (crater), a lunar crater
* Sikorsky Aircraft, an American aircraft manufacturer
People with the surname
* Brian Sikorski (born 1974), Major League Basebal ...
and numerous other companies in aerospace sector.
TAI manufactures Section 18 fuselage panels for
Airbus 319/320/321 aircraft, wing tips and flight deck panels for
Boeing 737 aircraft,
rear doors and engine cowlings for
Eurocopter EC135
The Eurocopter EC135 (now Airbus Helicopters H135) is a twin-engine civil light utility helicopter produced by Airbus Helicopters (formerly known as Eurocopter). It is capable of flight under instrument flight rules (IFR) and is outfitted with ...
helicopters,
MD 902 fuselage for
MD Helicopters, horizontal stabilizers, tail rotor pylons and tail booms for
Sikorsky S-70A and
MH-60
The Sikorsky S-70 is an American medium transport/utility helicopter family manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. It was developed for the United States Army in the 1970s, winning a competition to be designated the UH-60 Black Hawk and spawning a ...
helicopters, horizontal stabilizers for
Sikorsky S-76
The Sikorsky S-76 is a medium-size commercial utility helicopter designed and produced by the American helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. It is the company's first helicopter specifically developed for the civilian market.
The S-76 w ...
helicopters and
AB139 fuselages for
Agusta
Agusta was an Italian helicopter manufacturer. It was based in Samarate, Northern Italy. The company was founded by Count Giovanni Agusta in 1923, who flew his first airplane in 1907. The MV Agusta motorcycle manufacturer began as an offshoot o ...
.
Furthermore, TAI manufactures nose landing gear doors for the
Boeing 747
The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022.
After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
, dorsal fin for
777 and parts/subassembly parts for
737/767/777. It also manufactures seven components of the
Eurocopter AS 532 helicopter.
TAI, which had a single program (the co-production of the F-16 Fighting Falcon) at its establishment phase, is working on over 50 military and commercial programs today. As a partner of the
Airbus Defence and Space
Airbus Defence and Space is the division of Airbus SE responsible for the development and manufacturing of the corporation's defence and space products, while also providing related services. The division was formed in January 2014 during the ...
, TAI has been participating in the design and development activities of the
Airbus A400M
The Airbus A400M AtlasNamed after the Greek mythological figure. is a European four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. It was designed by Airbus Military (now Airbus Defence and Space) as a tactical airlifter with strategic capabil ...
program with the leading European aerospace companies; namely Airbus (France, Germany, Spain and UK), EADS CASA (Spain) and FLABEL (Belgium) from the beginning of the project. TAI has accepted the production of
A350XWB's winglets with the new cooperation.
In May 2015, the
Turkish regional jet project was launched, which consisted of the indigenous production of two
regional aircraft
A regional airliner or a feederliner is a small airliner that is designed to fly up to 100 passengers on short-haul flights, usually feeding larger carriers' airline hubs from small markets. This class of airliners is typically flown by the reg ...
in different sizes. The 32-seat TRJ-328 jet with a range up to was planned to enter service in 2019. It was a
Fairchild Dornier 328JET
The Fairchild-Dornier 328JET is a commuter airliner, based upon the turboprop-powered Dornier 328, developed by the German aircraft manufacturer Dornier Luftfahrt GmbH. It would be the last Dornier-designed aircraft to reach production before ...
-based, modernized aircraft with new cockpit and engines. The larger, 70-seat TRJ-628 jet would be ready in 2023.
The project has since been cancelled.
Products
Designed
*
TAI Hürkuş
Local production
*
TAI Hürkuş, two-seat, single engine, turboprop aircraft for training and ground attack
*
TAI Hürjet
The TAI Hürjet is a single-engine, tandem seat, supersonic advanced trainer and light combat aircraft, under development by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI). The first flight of the aircraft is planned for 18 March 2023.
The Turkish Air F ...
, proposed advanced jet trainer and light attack aircraft
*
TAI TFX
The TAI TF-X (Turkish Fighter) is a stealth twin-engine all-weather air superiority fighter in development by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and BAE Systems as its sub-contractor. The aircraft is planned to replace F-16 Fighting Falcons ...
, proposed stealth twin-engine all-weather
air superiority fighter
An air superiority fighter (or air-superiority fighter) is a fighter aircraft designed to seize control of enemy airspace by establishing tactical dominance (air superiority) over the opposing air force. Air-superiority fighters are primarily t ...
Helicopters
*
TAI/AgustaWestland T129 ATAK
The TAI/AgustaWestland T129 ATAK is a twin-engine, tandem seat, multi-role, all-weather attack helicopter based on the Agusta A129 Mangusta platform. The T129 was developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) in partnership with Leonardo (Ag ...
, light
attack helicopter
An attack helicopter is an armed helicopter with the primary role of an attack aircraft, with the offensive capability of engaging ground targets such as enemy infantry, military vehicles and fortifications. Due to their heavy armament the ...
* TAI T-70, Turkish variants of
Sikorsky S-70i
*
TAI T625
Tai or TAI may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
*Tai (comics) a fictional Marvel Comics supervillain
*Tai Fraiser, a fictional character in the 1995 film ''Clueless''
*Tai Kamiya, a fictional character in ''Digimon''
Businesses and organisations ...
, light
utility helicopter
A utility helicopter is a multi-purpose helicopter capable of fulfilling many different roles.
Civil
Many civilian helicopters are made for utility work such as agricultural aircraft. Many police and fire departments maintain and operate util ...
*
TAI T629
The TAI T629 is a medium-weight attack helicopter currently being developed by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI).
The T629 has more carrying capacity and extra one tonne of compared to the T129 ATAK, but less than the heavier T929 ATAK 2 tha ...
, medium attack helicopter
*
TAI T925
Tai or TAI may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
*Tai (comics) a fictional Marvel Comics supervillain
*Tai Fraiser, a fictional character in the 1995 film ''Clueless''
*Tai Kamiya, a fictional character in ''Digimon''
Businesses and organisations ...
, heavy utility helicopter
*
TAI T929 ATAK 2
The TAI T929 ATAK 2 is a twin-engine, heavy attack helicopter under development by Turkish Aerospace Industries. The helicopter is designed for attack, electronic warfare and reconnaissance missions in all-weather environments in both day and nig ...
, heavy attack helicopter
Unmanned aerial vehicles
*
TAI Aksungur
The TAI Aksungur is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) for the Turkish Armed Forces. Using existing technology from the TAI Anka series of drones, it is the manufacturer's largest drone with payload cap ...
MALE
Male (Mars symbol, symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization.
A male organism cannot sexual reproduction, repro ...
ISTAR
ISTAR stands for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employing its sensors and managi ...
*
TAI Anka-A (TIHA-A) (2013),
MALE
Male (Mars symbol, symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization.
A male organism cannot sexual reproduction, repro ...
ISTAR
ISTAR stands for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance. In its macroscopic sense, ISTAR is a practice that links several battlefield functions together to assist a combat force in employing its sensors and managi ...
UAV
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...
*
TAI Anka-B (TIHA-B) (2013), MALE
UAV
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...
*
TAI Anka-S MALE
UCAV
An unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), also known as a combat drone, colloquially shortened as drone or battlefield UAV, is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that is used for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance ...
*
TAI Baykuş
TAI Baykuş is a radio control, radio-controlled tactical unmanned drone designed, developed and built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) between 2003-2004.
Baykuş is the Turkish word for "owl". TAI produces other UAVs named after birds.
De ...
(2004), tactical surveillance drone
*
TAI Gözcü (2007), short-range tactical ISTAR drone
*
TAI Keklik
TAI Keklik is a radio-controlled tracking target drone introduced in 2001. Designed, developed and built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is in use by the Turkish Armed Forces for target tracking in non-f ...
(2001), target drone for tracking and non-firing exercise
*
TAI Martı
TAI Martı is a radio-controlled surveillance unmanned drone designed, developed and built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) in 2003.
Martı is the Turkish word for "seagull". TAI produces other UAVs named after birds.
Development
The sho ...
(2003), surveillance drone
*
TAI Pelikan
TAI Pelikan, aka IHA-X2, is a radio-controlled reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition drone. Designed, developed and built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a half scale model of the tactica ...
(IHA-X2), tactical ISTAR drone
*
TAI Şimşek
TAI Şimşek is a turbojet-powered radio-controlled high-speed target drone designed, developed and built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) between 2009-2012 for the needs of the Turkish Armed Forces.
Şimşek is the Turkish word for "ligh ...
, high-speed
target drone
A target drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle, generally remote controlled, usually used in the training of anti-aircraft crews.
One of the earliest drones was the British DH.82 Queen Bee, a variant of the Tiger Moth trainer aircraft operational ...
*
TAI Turna
TAI Turna is a turboprop-powered radio-controlled target drone introduced in 2001. Designed, developed and built by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and powered by an engine manufactured by Tusaş Engine Industries (TEI), the unmanned aerial ...
(2001), target drone for tracking and live firing
*TAI UAV-X1 (1982), surveillance drone
Satellites
*
Göktürk-1
Göktürk-1 (also Göktürk-1A) is a high resolution earth observation satellite (greater than 50 cm) designed and developed for the Turkish Ministry of National Defence by the Italian space service company Telespazio with technological in ...
,
earth observation satellite
An Earth observation satellite or Earth remote sensing satellite is a satellite used or designed for Earth observation (EO) from orbit, including spy satellites and similar ones intended for non-military uses such as environmental monitorin ...
*
Göktürk-2
Göktürk-2 is an earth observation satellite designed and developed by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) and built by TÜBİTAK Space Technologies Research Institute (TÜBİTAK UZAY) and Turkish Aerospace ...
(launched 2012), earth observation satellite
*
Göktürk-3
Göktürk-3 is a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) Earth observation satellite that will be designed and developed under prime contractorship of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) with support of Military Electronic Industries (ASELSAN) and TÜBİ ...
satellite
*
Türksat 6A
Türksat 6A is a Turkish communications satellite under construction, which will be developed and produced indigenously to be operated by Türksat A.Ş. This satellite will be Turkey's first fully domestically produced communications satellite ...
,
communications satellite
A communications satellite is an artificial satellite that relays and amplifies radio telecommunication signals via a transponder; it creates a communication channel between a source transmitter and a receiver at different locations on Ear ...
TAI operates
Turkish Satellite Assembly, Integration and Test Center
Turkish Space Systems, Integration and Test Centre ( tr, Uzay Sistemleri, Entegrasyon ve Test Merkezi) (USET) is a spacecraft production and testing facility owned by the Ministry of National Defence and operated by Turkish Aerospace Industries ...
.
See also
*
TEI
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Aerospace companies
Aircraft manufacturers of Turkey
Defence companies of Turkey
Government-owned companies of Turkey
Ministry of National Defense (Turkey)
Manufacturing companies based in Ankara
Space program of Turkey
Manufacturing companies established in 1984
Science and technology in Turkey
Turkish brands
Unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturers
Turkish companies established in 1984
Unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturers of Turkey