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The Turkish Stars ( tr, Türk Yıldızları) are the aerobatic demonstration team of the
Turkish Stars website
Virtual Turkish Stars website
Turkish Air Force Aerobatic teams Konya Province 1992 establishments in Turkey Military units and formations established in 1992 {{Turkey-org-stub
The Turkish Stars ( tr, Türk Yıldızları) are the aerobatic demonstration team of the Turkish Air Force
The Turkish Air Force ( tr, ) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The Turkish Air Force can trace its origins back to June 1911 when it was founded by the Ottoman Empire, however, the air force as it is known t ...
and the national aerobatics
Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aerial" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and glider ...
team of Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
.
The team was formed on November 7, 1992, and was named the Turkish Stars on January 11, 1993.
Turkish Stars fly with eight Canadair NF-5 fighter planes obtained from the Royal Netherlands Air Force
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march = ''Parade March of the Royal Netherlands Air Force''
, mascot =
, anniversaries =
, equipment ...
, making them one of few national aerobatics teams to fly supersonic
Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound (Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...
aircraft. Twelve NF-5 fighter planes are available to the team. The team uses CASA/IPTN CN-235
The CASA/IPTN CN-235 is a medium-range twin-engined transport aircraft that was jointly developed by CASA of Spain and Indonesian manufacturer IPTN. It is operated as both a regional airliner and military transport; its primary military roles ...
, C-130
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally des ...
and C-160
The Transall C-160 is a military transport aircraft, produced as a joint venture between France and Germany. " Transall" is an abbreviation of the manufacturing consortium Transporter Allianz, comprising the companies of MBB, Aerospatiale, an ...
support aircraft in Turkish Stars colours. The team is stationed at the Konya Air Base
Konya Airport ( tr, Konya Havalimanı) is a military air base and public airport in Konya, Turkey. The airport is also used by NATO. Opened to the public in 2000, the airport is 18 km from the city. In 2006, Konya Airport served 2,924 ...
of 3rd Main Jet Base Group Command. As a part of modernization programs of the Turkish Air Force, the NF-5 aircraft are planned to be replaced with locally produced TAI Hurjet in mid 2020s.
On August 24, 2001, the Turkish Stars demonstrated at an airshow to more than one million people in Baku, Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
, setting a world record.
Leadership
Current squadron leader MajorEsra Özatay
Esra Özatay (born 1976) is a Turkish female military officer and aviator. She is the commander of the military aerobatics fleet.
Private life
Özatay was born in 1976 in Germany. In 1993, she graduated from Kadıköy Girls High School and finis ...
assumed the role on 8 September 2016. She is the first and only female pilot to hold this position in the Turkish Air Force
The Turkish Air Force ( tr, ) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The Turkish Air Force can trace its origins back to June 1911 when it was founded by the Ottoman Empire, however, the air force as it is known t ...
.
Incidents
On 13 March 2012, one of the team's NF-5 fighter planes crashed during a training session inKonya Province
Konya Province ( tr, ), in southwest Central Anatolia, is the largest province of Turkey. The Province, provincial Capital (political), capital is the city of Konya. Its traffic code is 42.
The Kızılören solar power plant in Konya will be ...
, from the airbase where the team is stationed. Pilot Flight lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the Indi ...
Ümit Özer, who had joined the Turkish Stars shortly before, died in the crash.
On 7 April 2021, an NF-5 fighter plane crashed during a training session near Karatay. Pilot Flight lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the Indi ...
Burak Gençcelep died in the crash.
On 6 December 2022, during a training flight, an NF-5 collided with a bird causing engine failure. The pilot ejected and was confirmed to be unharmed.
See also
*Turkish Air Force
The Turkish Air Force ( tr, ) is the aerial warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The Turkish Air Force can trace its origins back to June 1911 when it was founded by the Ottoman Empire, however, the air force as it is known t ...
References
External links
Turkish Stars website
Virtual Turkish Stars website
Turkish Air Force Aerobatic teams Konya Province 1992 establishments in Turkey Military units and formations established in 1992 {{Turkey-org-stub