Turkish arms industry company pushes forward with ANKA-3, KAAN fighter jet developments PHOTO / VIDEO 

The IDEX 2025, one of the world’s leading defence exhibitions, has officially kicked off in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The event has sparked significant interest among Turkish defence industry companies, and numerous productive meetings are taking place, Caliber.Az reports via Turkish media.

🔹KAAN Birleşik Arap Emirlikleri'nin de radarına girdi.
🔹Türkiye ve BAE ortak hava platformu üretebilir.
🔹Hürkuş için sözleşme imzalandı.
🔹ANKA-3’ün envantere girişi uzak değil.

TUSAŞ Genel Müdürü Mehmet Demiroğlu'ndan TRT Haber’e özel açıklamalar.https://t.co/bJlmCsG66k pic.twitter.com/A4KjpeOHBX

— TRT HABER (@trthaber) February 18, 2025

Mehmet Demiroglu, CEO of Turkish Aerospace Industries arms industry company (TUSAŞ), shared details of the event for the first time, highlighting TUSAŞ' strong presence in the UAE market. He mentioned that the company is engaged in various projects with both state agencies and private firms. Demiroglu also noted that representatives from the UAE are particularly interested in the ATAK 1 attack helicopter. 

"They have previously tested the ATAK 1 helicopter and were very impressed. Then, they visited Turkey with a high-level delegation and experienced it firsthand. They were also very satisfied with the capabilities of ATAK. However, the process slowed down a bit afterward. Now, we are working to accelerate it. We’ve had some discussions in this regard," said Demiroglu.

The CEO of TUSAŞ also reminded that the UAE has serious intentions regarding the ANKA-3 drone and that they had previously put forward various initiatives concerning this platform. 

Emphasising that they are now expecting the resumption of this process, Demiroglu added, "We are not only focused on the ANKA-3. We aim to co-develop another platform. The UAE is also looking at this very positively. We will share good news in the coming days." 

Demiroglu noted that during the ANKA-3 testing, they are working in coordination with the Turkish Air Force: "Taking their requirements into account, we plan to conduct a series of firing and flight tests. In recent weeks, we’ve fired munitions from the internal bays, and their numbers will continue increasing. The Turkish Air Force and other users have high expectations for this aircraft. They are very pleased with the progress. We are working hard to achieve this goal. It would be premature to specify an exact delivery date, but I can say it’s not too far off."

Demiroglu also added that work on the second and third prototypes of the national fighter jet KAAN is ongoing, and revealed that the second prototype will take flight by the end of this year, with the third prototype expected to follow in early 2026. 

He emphasised that not only TUSAŞ but also other companies are making every effort to deliver the KAAN on schedule, with 2028 set as the target year for its first delivery.

By Naila Huseynova