Turkey set to build 'national, original' fighter aircraft after 2020

Turkey's top defense procurement committee decided late Wednesday that Ankara would develop and manufacture its next air-to-air fighter aircraft, either by itself or in cooperation with another country, Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul said. Gonul told reporters after a meeting of the Defense Industry Executive Committee that the Defense Industry Undersecretariat, Turkey 's procurement agency, would start talks with Turkish Aerospace Industries, the country's main aerospace company, for a "conceptual design" of a fighter aircraft and jet trainer to be built after the year 2020. Committee members include Gonul, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Chief of General Staff Gen. Isık Kosaner, and procurement chief Murad Bayar. Gonul also said Turkey has rejected an offer by the Eurofighter consortium for the sale of Typhoon fighters. "The Eurofighter is off Turkey 's plate," he said. The Eurofighter consortium, Italian government and Italian companies had recently stepped up efforts for joint development and sale to Turkey of up to 60 jets. Turkey already has selected the US-led F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Lightning II as one of its next-generation fighter aircraft types. It plans to buy about 100 F-35 aircraft worth nearly $15 billion. Many Turkish companies are members of the Joint Strike Fighter consortium of nine Western countries, and are producing parts for the aircraft. Turkey also will receive 30 modern F-16 Block 50 fighters from Lockheed Martin as a stopgap solution until F-35 deliveries begin around 2015.