TR Turkiye's F-35 Project and Discussions

[Strong AI]

Hulusi Akar's Message on the S-400 and F-35 in Washington: "Turkey Will Return to the Production Program"

Hulusi Akar, Chairman of the National Defense Commission of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, made noteworthy statements regarding Turkey's discussions with the United States on the S-400 air defense system and the F-35 program.

Speaking in Washington, Akar answered questions from M5 Washington Correspondent Anıl Sural.

Responding to questions about the F-35 program and the S-400 systems, Akar also stated that a positive atmosphere had emerged in Turkey-U.S. relations following the NATO Summit.

Akar said that the members of Congress he met with in Washington also expressed positive views about the outcomes of the summit. He added that the technical and operational work regarding the S-400 issue would be carried out by the relevant ministries.

Commenting on the process, Akar said:

"The parties are working to achieve concrete progress, and hopefully we will reach a good point. These are, of course, technical studies, operational work, and efforts carried out by the ministries. Congress is not involved in this process. We left the meetings with the impression that there are no remaining obstacles on this issue."

"Turkey Will Return to the Production Program"

Hulusi Akar also made important remarks regarding Turkey's participation in the F-35 program.

When asked by Sural about the status of the F-35 fighter jets that had been produced for Turkey but not delivered, and how the process would move forward following statements by U.S. President Donald Trump, Akar emphasized that Turkey is not merely a buyer but also one of the program's production partners.

Highlighting Turkey's role in the F-35 program, Akar stated that the process would continue within the framework of the program, saying:

"We are returning to the program. We are not simply an F-35 purchaser. We have responsibilities in the program, including manufacturing components, and we will fulfill those responsibilities. Therefore, this is a program, and we will continue our work."

Akar also commented on the overall atmosphere of his meetings in Washington, stating that the NATO Summit had been highly successful for relations among NATO, the United States, and Turkey.

He added that a new period had begun within NATO, with new approaches and initiatives coming onto the agenda, and emphasized that contacts between Turkey and the United States on defense and security issues are continuing.

https://m5dergi.com/savunma-haberleri/hulusi-akardan-washingtonda-s-400-ve-f-35-mesaji-turkiye-uretim-programina-donecek/

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/2078183807979536429

 

[Turkic]

Hulusi Akar's Message on the S-400 and F-35 in Washington: "Turkey Will Return to the Production Program"

Hulusi Akar, Chairman of the National Defense Commission of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, made noteworthy statements regarding Turkey's discussions with the United States on the S-400 air defense system and the F-35 program.

Speaking in Washington, Akar answered questions from M5 Washington Correspondent Anıl Sural.

Responding to questions about the F-35 program and the S-400 systems, Akar also stated that a positive atmosphere had emerged in Turkey-U.S. relations following the NATO Summit.

Akar said that the members of Congress he met with in Washington also expressed positive views about the outcomes of the summit. He added that the technical and operational work regarding the S-400 issue would be carried out by the relevant ministries.

Commenting on the process, Akar said:

"The parties are working to achieve concrete progress, and hopefully we will reach a good point. These are, of course, technical studies, operational work, and efforts carried out by the ministries. Congress is not involved in this process. We left the meetings with the impression that there are no remaining obstacles on this issue."

"Turkey Will Return to the Production Program"

Hulusi Akar also made important remarks regarding Turkey's participation in the F-35 program.

When asked by Sural about the status of the F-35 fighter jets that had been produced for Turkey but not delivered, and how the process would move forward following statements by U.S. President Donald Trump, Akar emphasized that Turkey is not merely a buyer but also one of the program's production partners.

Highlighting Turkey's role in the F-35 program, Akar stated that the process would continue within the framework of the program, saying:

"We are returning to the program. We are not simply an F-35 purchaser. We have responsibilities in the program, including manufacturing components, and we will fulfill those responsibilities. Therefore, this is a program, and we will continue our work."

Akar also commented on the overall atmosphere of his meetings in Washington, stating that the NATO Summit had been highly successful for relations among NATO, the United States, and Turkey.

He added that a new period had begun within NATO, with new approaches and initiatives coming onto the agenda, and emphasized that contacts between Turkey and the United States on defense and security issues are continuing.

https://m5dergi.com/savunma-haberleri/hulusi-akardan-washingtonda-s-400-ve-f-35-mesaji-turkiye-uretim-programina-donecek/

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/2078183807979536429

If no obstacles were to put ahead, how fast could return to the program be?

 

[YeşilVatan]

If no obstacles were to put ahead, how fast could return to the program be?

Kubilay Yıldırım says production facilities and personnel that would be directed towards F-35 are now doing other stuff, civilian or indigenous military projects. Those are finite resources so this means some of it must be redirected.

If KAAN gets sidelined even %1 I'm going to be royally pissed.

 

[Zafer]

Kubilay Yıldırım says production facilities and personnel that would be directed towards F-35 are now doing other stuff, civilian or indigenous military projects. Those are finite resources so this means some of it must be redirected.

If KAAN gets sidelined even %1 I'm going to be royally pissed.

Look how we went up to making 50 military ships simultaneously. So we can expand in the aviation field too. However we should limit the puchase of F35 fighters to a small number like 35 or so. We want to have and sell Kaan as our primary goal.

 

[Pokemonte13]

Look how we went up to making 50 military ships simultaneously. So we can expand in the aviation field too. However we should limit the puchase of F35 fighters to a small number like 35 or so. We want to have and sell Kaan as our primary goal.

not a fair comparison. We already had civil naval capacity we didn't expand but made use of it. Our aviation field is currently full and would require heavy investment to expand and it is unlikely we will return as a producer at most we will integrate some of our weapons and maybe that original engine maintenance center

 

[Zafer]

not a fair comparison. We already had civil naval capacity we didn't expand but made use of it. Our aviation field is currently full and would require heavy investment to expand and it is unlikely we will return as a producer at most we will integrate some of our weapons and maybe that original engine maintenance center

We are already investing in aviation, we can aswell invest more. There will be other benefits of investing more. We can possibly enter civil aviation and create lots of high paying jobs. Also all the supporting technologies become more affordable as you scale up. And this is only the industrial/economical aspects.

 

[Strong AI]

Video is in english

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/2078450969713455435

 

[dBSPL]

Kubilay Yıldırım says production facilities and personnel that would be directed towards F-35 are now doing other stuff, civilian or indigenous military projects. Those are finite resources so this means some of it must be redirected.

If KAAN gets sidelined even %1 I'm going to be royally pissed.

Hulusi Akar's latest statement in Washington has shifted this debate from "will it happen" to "how and how fast." Akar said Türkiye is returning to the program, that it is not merely a buyer but a production partner and will fulfil its manufacturing responsibilities, and that the process is now being handled as technical work at the ministry level rather than through Congress. No formal agreement has been signed and the delivery timeline is still unclear, so I am not claiming full certainty here, but the scenario has moved from "if we return" to "what happens when we return."

The capacity strain does not have to fall on TUSAŞ or ASELSAN specifically. TUSAŞ's composite and assembly facilities are likely already occupied by indigenous manned jets and unmanned systems like ANKA-3; investment in new production lines is already underway. Alp Havacılık, on the other hand, runs the 5-axis titanium CNC centres and specialised furnaces currently working for civil aviation majors and indigenous engine projects; since Türkiye is set to move into serial production on several turbofan engine programs over the next 10-15 years, these facilities already have to sustain a capacity expansion curve regardless of F-35 demand, so that investment trend continues either way. Labour-intensive sub-suppliers such as Fokker Elmo could adapt relatively fast given the flexibility of their wiring (EWIS) infrastructure, simply by adding personnel.

I think the real bottleneck could land on ASELSAN and HAAVELSAN. Based on official statements, the S-400 issue now appears to be heading toward resolution through bilateral technical cooperation, so I am assuming the main obstacle to ODIN integration will be resource allocation rather than security clearance. Both institutions' engineering capacity is currently focused on KAAN's fully indigenous avionics and cyber architecture; re-integrating into the US-controlled ODIN software ecosystem for F-35 would mean diverting part of that capacity. Since MİKES was folded into ASELSAN and its separate legal entity dissolved, that accumulated expertise has likely shifted toward the Steel Dome air defense project and KAAN/UCAV radar and jammer systems. But, If Türkiye's F-35 Integrated Training Center were re-established domestically, HAVELSAN's adaptation there would probably be fast enough, since the company is now a global-scale player in this field.

Worth flagging separately is the potential tension with KAAN's export narrative. KAAN has so far been positioned both as an alternative free of F-35's political constraints (end-user restrictions, third-party transfer vetoes) and, in official statements, explicitly as a platform meant to outperform the F-35. If Türkiye returns as a full F-35 user, reconciling those two messages, building an independent and superior platform while simultaneously rejoining a competitor's program, becomes a communications question in its own right. This has no direct bearing on technical capacity, but it is not a point should leave out.

The other side of the coin is the crisis on the US end. The program is going through one of the largest sustainment crises in its history, with sub-suppliers unable to keep up with parts demand and mission-capable rates falling; the Fort Worth assembly line has a backlog of aircraft missing components. According to reports from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), a core driver of this is that spare parts producers cannot keep pace with depot-level maintenance demand. So the JSF program is currently in an unnamed logistics crisis of its own; Türkiye's return should be discussed from a point of mutual need rather than a one-sided "they need us" framing.

The assessment below of which new players could help resolve this crisis is entirely my own projection, not based on any official talks or leaks. Coşkunöz's publicly known work producing mid-fuselage assembly groups for South Korea's KF-21 program and for civil aviation suggests, in my view, that it could take on production of fuselage support panels in TUSAŞ's place. REPKON's flowforming and shearforming technology could offer a meaningful time advantage over conventional machining for engine rotor shafts and precision fuselage parts, though I cannot back a specific percentage with a source. SDT's data-link and telemetry infrastructure, built for KAAN and indigenous munitions, looks like a capability that could translate to F-35 cockpit data storage units and ACMI pods. Kale Arge's development of turbojet engines like the KTJ-3200 suggests it could take on a role in small heat-resistant F135 engine components. PAVOTEK's power distribution systems and avionics enclosures could similarly provide hardware support to Fokker Elmo's wiring processes. None of this reflects a confirmed supply agreement; these are reasonable pairings I am inferring from existing capabilities. As we move down the pyramid, more examples can be given.

The real constraint is neither money nor machinery, but qualified engineering hours. Türkiye's pool of certified engineers and technicians able to produce to AS9100 standards is limited, and training and certifying new personnel typically takes more than a year. If TUSAŞ and ASELSAN take on a significant share of F-35 work, they may have to pull senior staff off KAAN and HÜRJET to hold the delivery schedule, the classic Brooks's Law problem, where adding workload to an already-running project slows it down further. In the short term that is an operational shock risk. If that shock is managed well, the gains are lasting: the additional CNC machines and composite autoclaves bought for F-35 stay in the factory afterward. It would be wrong to frame zero-defect discipline as something F-35 brings to TUSAŞ, since TUSAŞ already ran one of the most flawless F-16 production lines in the world before this, and KAAN is the product of that decades-long track record; the real gain is not the discipline itself but the added global supply-chain experience and the expansion in logistics scale.

Furthermore, we are not entirely inexperienced in such processes; on the contrary, we probably represent the most successful and unique example in the world. The section below on how TUSAŞ and Kale Havacılık adapted F-35 infrastructure for KAAN is also largely my own inference; public sources do not go into this level of internal engineering detail, so it should be read as "this is probably how it played out" rather than confirmed fact. My assumption is that the autoclave lines and automated fiber placement robots set up for F-35 were reprogrammed for KAAN's fuselage production, but that because KAAN is larger and twin-engine unlike the F-35, the robots' software and fixtures had to be re-engineered from scratch. Kale Havacılık's shift from applying F-35's landing gear blueprints to drawing KAAN's own schematics may be a similar case of this transformation. If that inference holds, KAAN's move to the prototype stage would probably have taken longer had Türkiye not been part of the F-35 program, but I am presenting that as a cautious assessment rather than a firm counterfactual claim.

In the end, the deciding variable is volume and timing. If the return proceeds on a phased, controlled schedule, the financial leverage and infrastructure gains will dominate and strengthen national projects over the long run. If the US loads Turkish industry with a sudden, high-volume order to solve its own parts crisis, the short-term operational shock and the drain of senior personnel could delay KAAN's own schedule. Akar's statement indicates the process has now become ministry-level technical work, which points toward a phased approach being on the table, but how that translates into a concrete timeline will depend on the technical delegation talks in the coming months.

 

[Turkic]

Work force in defence industry is up by ~20 thousand in 5 years between 2020 (75k+) and 2025 (100k).

As per companies, Aselsan went from ~8k to ~16k (2020-2026)
Tusaş from ~9k to ~16k (2020-2026)

Is the number of engineers and technicians really a bottleneck for major ex-JSF production partners? The only bottleneck I see is TEI but they were not alone with Kale being an important partner in F-135. Also there's one more thing: Return to the production would need technicians more than engineers. Or am I wrong?

 

[Zafer]

Backing up the US with F35 production is a major deal that will only help the US. I would expect some side benefits to us to compensate our contribution. A microelectronics endeavor cooperation would be fitting.

 

[Samba]

Backing up the US with F35 production is a major deal that will only help the US. I would expect some side benefits to us to compensate our contribution. A microelectronics endeavor cooperation would be fitting.

What i think about the change of US stance in the matter has two aspects:

1. Slow down Rurkish development of KAAN and T35K engine.

2. Help US arms procurement amd sales fasten.

None helps us much...

 

[Zafer]

Rurkish > you just coined a new word for Russo-Turk.

I don't think this move will slow down our Kaan efforts. We will only grow bigger with this. We will make Kaan in record time and we will also have our hand in F35 supply. We can gauge what we give and what we take.

 

[Strong AI]

What the Turkish supplier told Hürriyet... This is how the F-35s would return to the fleet from "deep sleep"

As a more positive atmosphere has emerged again between the United States and Turkey regarding the F-35 program, attention has shifted to the process that could begin if a possible S-400 formula is agreed upon. Ergün Kırlıkovalı, the sole supplier of the F-35's radar-absorbing coating, explained the technical details of a possible return to Hürriyet.

Turkey's return to the F-35 program—of which it was one of the main manufacturers before being removed in 2019 due to U.S. sanctions—has returned to the agenda following positive signals between Ankara and Washington. After U.S. President Donald Trump said he wanted to lift the sanctions and deliver the aircraft to Turkey, efforts focused on finding a solution for the Russian-made S-400 air defense systems that caused the crisis. But how would the process unfold once the S-400 obstacle is removed? We asked Turkish polymer scientist and businessman Ergün Kırlıkovalı, one of the suppliers in the F-35 production line.

Kırlıkovalı, the inventor of the polymer coatings that make aircraft nearly invisible to radar, has supplied these materials for America's most advanced combat aircraft for 34 years through his California-based company, Integrated Polymer Industries. Since 1992, he has supplied radar-absorbing coating materials for the U.S. B-2 Spirit stealth bomber, and since 2006 for the F-35 fighter jet. He is the sole supplier of this coating for the F-35. Occupying a central position in F-35 production, Kırlıkovalı explained in detail to Hürriyet how the technical process would work once the political obstacles are removed.

A Multi-Layered Process

According to Kırlıkovalı, the return of a country that has been removed from the program would be an unprecedented situation and would become a "multi-layered bureaucratic, legal, and technical operation."

First, Washington would have to officially notify Congress that it is lifting the sanctions. Then Turkey would need to be reinstated as a party to the partnership agreement that was terminated in 2021.

The first concrete issue on the table is financial. Turkey's frozen $1.4 billion investment in the program, along with years of accumulated hangar and maintenance costs for the aircraft, would be settled through a financial agreement.

Kırlıkovalı believes Turkey could also argue that since the U.S. has held its money for seven years, interest should be taken into account and offset against maintenance, storage, and upgrade expenses.

Another critical step in the return process is digital security.

"The F-35 is not just a fighter jet; it is a flying data center," Kırlıkovalı said. Therefore, the cyber infrastructure of the Turkish Air Force would need to be inspected and accredited by the U.S. Department of Defense (Pentagon) before reconnecting to the aircraft's global logistics network, ODIN.

The Aircraft Cannot Fly Immediately

One of the biggest questions surrounding the improved atmosphere is whether the six F-35s that Turkey paid for and that have been sitting in U.S. hangars for years could be delivered immediately.

"These aircraft cannot simply be taken out of the hangar and flown," Kırlıkovalı said, emphasizing that they require an extensive maintenance and overhaul process.

According to him, the jets are not stored in an ordinary hangar but preserved under a procedure known as "deep sleep."

The aircraft have been filled with special anti-corrosion protective fluids, and their sensitive systems have been sealed.

As part of the reactivation process, all fuel lines, hydraulic fluids, and filters would be replaced. Rubber seals that have remained unused for years would undergo microscopic testing to check for drying and cracking.

The stealth coating that gives the aircraft its radar-evading capability would also be inspected, and any damage caused by humidity or temperature changes would be repaired.

Refresher Training for Pilots

Kırlıkovalı noted that significant technological advances have been made in the F-35 over the past seven years.

Electronic hardware—including mission computers, cockpit displays, and memory units—would be removed and replaced with newer systems, and the latest flight software would be installed.

The engines would also be removed from the airframe and inspected in test hangars.

He estimates that the maintenance and overhaul process would take between six and twelve months.

Afterward, once the aircraft successfully complete test flights conducted by American pilots, they would be handed over to Turkish pilots who have completed refresher training at Luke Air Force Base in the United States.

Turkey Could Find Alternative Roles

According to Kırlıkovalı, however, it would be difficult for Turkey to return to its former status as a founding partner producing more than 900 different parts.

He pointed out that Turkish companies' work packages have since been reassigned to suppliers in the United States, Australia, and Italy under long-term contracts worth billions of dollars.

"Taking those jobs back and giving them to Turkey, when no one has done anything wrong, would create enormous legal compensation claims and political crises," he said.

Nevertheless, he believes alternative partnership models are possible.

The first would be serving as a backup supplier for production lines that have become bottlenecks as annual production rises to between 150 and 190 aircraft.

The second would involve restoring integration rights for SOM-J cruise missiles and domestically developed guidance kits, creating what he described as "a very large indirect market" for companies such as Roketsan and Aselsan.

The third alternative, which he says could generate billions of dollars in annual revenue, would be for Turkey to become the regional engine and airframe maintenance hub for F-35 fleets operating in Europe and the Middle East.

"The F-35 Will Not Undermine KAAN—It Will Strengthen It"

Kırlıkovalı also disagrees with those who argue that returning to the F-35 program would harm Turkey's KAAN fighter program.

He believes Turkey's defense industry has long since reached the maturity required to support two fifth-generation fighter programs simultaneously.

In his view, while work related to the F-35 would focus on supply and maintenance, Turkey's design and engineering capabilities could continue to concentrate on KAAN.

He also believes that the arrival of the F-35 would not undermine the wind tunnel and testing infrastructure built for KAAN. On the contrary, it would reinforce their accreditation according to NATO standards.

Looking ahead five years, Kırlıkovalı envisions both aircraft serving together in the Turkish Air Force: the F-35 acting as "a flying intelligence and data center" capable of penetrating enemy defenses, while the twin-engine KAAN would function as "a pure air-superiority beast," exploiting the gaps opened by the F-35 to establish control of the battlespace.

He also argues that a KAAN whose source code is entirely owned by Turkish engineers would provide Turkey with its strongest military guarantee for pursuing an independent foreign policy.

Türk tedarikçi Hürriyet'e anlattı... Derin uykudan filoya F-35’ler böyle dönecek

ABD ile Türkiye arasında F-35 konusunda yeniden olumlu hava oluşurken gözler olası S-400 formülünün ardından başlayacak sürece çevrildi. F-35’in tek radar...

www.hurriyet.com.tr

 

[Sanchez]

Many ways to view this. One I subscribe to is that this is Greek lobbyists not exerting pressure but showing to their constituents that they are working on it. Everyone knows S400 is still in Turkey and that at this time transfer of F-35s is still illegal. Don't know what happened last week with Dilipak's column, did a last minute hickup happen; we don't know; but S400s are in Turkey still. There's no way to hide them being moved.

"Breaking: Turkey has not yet met the conditions set forth in U.S. law for its reinstatement in the F-35 program, the State Department clarifies in a letter to Congress. At the same time, it pledges to ensure that any process to resolve the S-400 issue will be “transparent, lawful, and consistent with U.S. national security interests.”

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/2079991100048048130

 

[Lool]

Many ways to view this. One I subscribe to is that this is Greek lobbyists not exerting pressure but showing to their constituents that they are working on it. Everyone knows S400 is still in Turkey and that at this time transfer of F-35s is still illegal. Don't know what happened last week with Dilipak's column, did a last minute hickup happen; we don't know; but S400s are in Turkey still. There's no way to hide them being moved.

"Breaking: Turkey has not yet met the conditions set forth in U.S. law for its reinstatement in the F-35 program, the State Department clarifies in a letter to Congress. At the same time, it pledges to ensure that any process to resolve the S-400 issue will be “transparent, lawful, and consistent with U.S. national security interests.”

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/2079991100048048130

Some Israeli sources on X are stating that the reason for this delay is that Natenyahu personally called Putin and asked him to either prevent the resale of S400s to a third country or at the very least to prolong the process as much as possible until Trump leaves office and another more radical pro-Israeli president gets in power

Nothing is accurate though