Since the engine of Turkish cruise missiles is produced in France, Paris banned Ankara from selling them to Azerbaijan.
According to Turkish sources, an agreement on the sale of SOM missiles to Azerbaijan was reached several years ago, but due to a ban imposed by France, the deal was never implemented. Even despite the fact that the MiG-29 fighters of the Azerbaijani Air Force were modified for them, and models of the SOM-B1 cruise missile were demonstrated at a military parade in Baku back in 2018.
The SOM cruise missiles were developed by the Turkish Defense Industry Research Institute (TÜBİTAK SAGE) and later mass-produced by Roketsan.
The 600-kg SOM air-to-ground cruise missiles with a range of at least 250 kilometers and a 230-kg warhead are equipped with TR40 rocket engines manufactured by the French company Safran and are designed to destroy enemy air defense systems and military infrastructure.
However, we have learned that Turkey's Kale Arge has already developed KTJ-3200 rocket engines for use in the SOM missiles and will soon begin supplying them to Roketsan.
Thus, the "French barrier" in the Ankara-Baku deal has been removed and air-to-ground cruise missiles will arrive in service of the Azerbaijani Air Force by the end of this year. According to the information, Azerbaijan has placed more than 400 official orders for SOM missiles.
The KTJ-3200 jet engines are largely produced at the expense of military-technical potential of Turkey and will also be used in the production of Turkish anti-ship missiles ATMACA.
haqqin.az
