Turkey to Display National Fighter Jet Mock-up at Paris Air Show 2019

A mock-up of Turkey's first national fighter jet will be showcased at this year's Paris Air Show, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) General Manager Temel Kotil announced at the 14th International Defense Fair (IDEF).

Kotil indicated that they have progressed by establishing all infrastructure facilities in the National Fighter Jet Project, Daily Sabah reported.

"This is our biggest project. When we finish this, Turkey can say technologically it is no different from the U.S., Russia, and China," he stressed.

TAI continues its preliminary design works for the production of modern aircraft designed with domestic capabilities and that can replace the F-16 aircraft, which are in the inventory of the Turkish Air Forces Command and are considered to be gradually decommissioned by the 2030s.

Turkey and the U.K. signed a memorandum of understanding during President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to the U.K. on May 13-15, 2018 to develop the national fighter jet, preliminarily designated as TF-X.

BAE Systems and Rolls Royce are expected to partner with TAI in developing a twin-engine jet. However recent reports suggest that that the two firms may be having second thoughts over financial commitments and the growing US pressure on Turkey to give up on buying S-400 or lose a lucrative deal to supply parts for the F-35 jets.