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Turkey KAAN fifth-gen fighter development

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2026-08-25 09:49 UTC → 2026-08-31 09:26 UTC · added ~~removed~~

Turkey KAAN ~~fifth‑gen~~ fifth-gen fighter development

Turkey’s indigenous ~~fifth‑generation~~ fifth-generation fighter program, KAAN, has continued its rapid progress through a series of ~~ground‑testing~~ ground-testing milestones. Following ~~dual‑flight~~ dual-flight demonstrations at the Farnborough Airshow on 26 July 2026, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) completed a powered taxi run of the P1 prototype on 2 August 2026 at its Ankara runway. The test confirmed the operation of brakes, steering, ~~flight‑control~~ flight-control functions and ~~engine‑piston~~ engine-piston synchronization under the General Electric F110 ~~after‑burner~~ after-burner engines. It also revealed design refinements such as updated ~~control‑surface~~ control-surface actuators, a modified cockpit, enlarged ~~air‑intake,~~ air-intake, a larger nose opening for an ~~electro‑optical~~ electro-optical sensor and a wider ~~landing‑gear~~ landing-gear track. TAI General Manager Mehmet Demiroğlu announced that the second and third prototypes are under development, with the goal of having both the P1 and P2 prototypes airborne by the end of 2026. While the P1 still uses ~~U.S‑supplied~~ U.S-supplied F110 engines—for which the U.S. Congress cleared the export of 80 units in July 2026—production models are slated to receive the domestically developed TF35 engine. The project has reportedly achieved a domestic content rate of approximately 90%, excluding the engine and ejection seat, with domestic engine testing projected for around 2032. TAI maintains a schedule for deliveries to the Turkish Air Force by 2028. A configuration integrated with weapons and combat systems is expected to undergo testing in 2027. Defence analysts note growing export interest from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan and Azerbaijan, positioning KAAN as a potential fourth major supplier of ~~fifth‑generation~~ fifth-generation fighters.

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