Turkish Typhoon deal edges ever closer
The Turkish Ministry of Defence has said that the THK’s ‘Needs Definition Document’ has been submitted to both the UK Ministry of Defence and BAE Systems, and that it is currently awaiting a ‘pricing proposal’. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2026, with full operational capability due to be achieved by 2030.
Various options are being considered, reportedly including a buy split between new-build and second hand Tranche 1 aircraft, though Türkiye’s preference is reportedly for all 40 aircraft to be newly produced.
General Ziya Cemal Kadıoğlu, the Commander of the Turkish Air Force visited MoD Main Building and RAF Coningsby during his visit to the United Kingdom on 18-20 February 2025. The visit was made at the official invitation of the Royal Air Force’s Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton.
General Metin Gürak, the Turkish Chief of General Staff had previously visited Coningsby on 11 August 2024, while two RAF Typhoons visited Mürted Air Base in Ankara on 18 December 2024 after participating in the Ferocious Falcon V exercise in Qatar. This provided an opportunity for senior Turkish Air Force personnel to view the aircraft ‘up close’.
Turkey’s plans to procure the Eurofighter Typhoon have provoked howls of protest from neighbouring Greece, which has expressed objections to the deal in view of the ongoing military competition between the two nations in the Aegean. Greece has made particular efforts to try and prevent Türkiye from acquiring the MBDA Meteor missile, attempting to leverage its influence with France, one of the six partners in the Meteor consortium and one of the five divisions within MBDA – arguably the most senior.
These attempts seem to have failed, with France refusing to stand in the way of the Turkish Meteor deal. The French Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu told a parliamentary session that France lacks the authority to halt the deal. “It’s true that Greece asked France to block the sale of Meteor missiles to Turkey, but this falls outside the jurisdiction of President Emmanuel Macron’s government,” he said.
Turkish Ministry of National Defence sources have indicated that: “We plan to add Meteor missiles to our inventory within the scope of the Eurofighter Typhoon procurement project,” and that procurement work on the Meteor missile “continues smoothly.”
