Why bother make the off the shelf parts yourself when you can spend your energy in making your end product better. If we had started developing our own engine for the Atak helicopter we could only hope to start making it when the engine is ready while now we have the products half a decade before we can have a reliable engine.
Baykar TB2 had 93% indigenous rating. If we waited for an indigenous engine for it we could only be starting to fly it this year, which is a half a decade later than we flied it with foreign engine. Our own CATS was like 10 kg heavier and we kept buying the lighter and foreign one until we can't anymore. End product quality is paramount, you want to use the part that will make the end product better for as long as you can until you can not anymore.
Every time Turkey gets a minor item banned it makes international news for Turkey and embarrasses the nation. Critical parts I understand like an engine, but basic items like the most recent items that got banned from england is embarrassing, especially when Turkey repeats the tired "we thank them for banning stuff" now we make it instead. It just comes across as dumb.
Just like when the armenians like bitter insecure little girls, lobbied a uk company for basic off the shelf parts.
Andair, a British aerospace company, says it suspended sending drone parts to Baykar, a Turkish arm manufacturer, on the request of the Armenian embassy.
www.trtworld.com
Critical stuff i understand it takes time to develop like an engine and it makes sense to make what you can now until you can make your own, but not basic parts that Turks can make with absolute ease.
And baykar has a penchant for over emphasising the ingenious contribution. I have no doubts now that most of the TB2 is Turkish made, but it wasn't like that at the start despite ak party and baykar claiming otherwise.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry plans to purchase six to 12 Bayraktar TB2 complexes, each with six to 12 control stations, and three to four UAVs, according to latest reports.
eurasiantimes.com
If i remember correctly even the original propeller was brought from a german company, recently changed to a 3 blade Turkish made one. Yes today most of that drone is Turkish made, but we don't need to keep waiting for petty embargoes to make the basic parts ourselves. One day you might get caught out in serious situation.
Long story short we seem to be a race of people who only get moving when its do or die. No doubts once we move incredible things happen, but it would be nice if we could be a bit more german in our planning and preperation.
We had to get embargoed after the Cyprus liberation of 1974 before Turks realised they had to start making their own stuff.
www.star.com.tr
