Turkey flew ‘invisible’ air warrior for the first time, Pakistan has laddu in both its hands, how much danger is there to lagging India?
Turkey’s first fifth generation stealth fighter jet TF Kan has made its first successful flight. This flight of Cannes, which was not caught by radar, is being considered a historical event for Turkey. Turkey is already the king of drone planes and now by flying fighter jets it has introduced its power to the world. An American-made F-16 fighter jet also flew with this aircraft. This Turkish fighter plane remained in the air for about 13 minutes and reached a height of 8000 feet. During this period its speed remained up to 230 knots. Kan is Turkey’s first indigenous fighter jet and it wants to build it in collaboration with many countries including Pakistan. Due to this successful flight by Turkey, Pakistan has got laddu on both its hands, whereas India now seems to be lagging behind.
Actually, Pakistan has announced that it is purchasing the first fifth generation aircraft FC 31 fighter jet from China. China claims that this stealth fighter jet cannot be detected by radar. Pakistani Air Force Chief had announced that soon his country will get this aircraft from China. At the same time, Pakistan has received the offer of fifth generation fighter jet from another friend Turkey. Turkey wants Pakistan to jointly build Kan aircraft with it. For this he also wants financial help from poor Pakistan but till now Pakistan has not taken any decision.
India is lagging behind in stealth fighter jet
On one hand, Pakistan is buying fifth generation aircraft, while India is no longer able to move forward after the deal for fourth generation aircraft like Rafale. India’s indigenous stealth fighter program is still lagging far behind. Meanwhile, Turkey has high hopes of exporting the Kan fighter jet to Asia and Gulf countries. Turkey was expelled from the US F-35 program in 2019 after purchasing the S-400 system from Russia. After this, Turkey is continuously working to develop its fighter aircraft. President Erdogan highlighted the significance of the first flight during a political rally. “We have reached an important milestone towards the production of our own 5th generation fighter aircraft,” Erdogan said.
Local elections are to be held in Türkiye soon. Turkish Aerospace Industries, a state-owned company, plans to deliver the first 20 Kan jets powered by locally produced engines to the Turkish Air Force by 2028. The company aims to upgrade the Ear to a 5th generation model with stealth capabilities by 2030. However prototype jets currently use US-made engines. TAI is actively working on its own engine development. Turkish Aerospace Industries has already made successful sales of armed drones to Malaysia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan and attack helicopters to the Philippines.
Türkiye wants to sell ‘ears’ to many countries in Asia
Turkish Aerospace Industries has set up offices in Asia and is recruiting local engineers for defense projects. Company CEO Tamer Kotil has invited countries such as Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Azerbaijan and Qatar to participate in Turkey’s major defense development projects. Turkey has signed a memorandum of cooperation with Azerbaijan for the Kan aircraft project. A similar agreement with Pakistan is expected soon. In the absence of the US stealth fighter F-35, Turkey plans to boost its air force by acquiring additional F-16 jets, Eurofighter Typhoon and domestically made drones.
