President Erdogan reveals plans for next-gen aircraft carrier
President Erdogan says Turkish fighter jet KAAN set to take off before end of 2023 while Turkiye plans to build a next-generation aircraft carrier
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday said the domestic fighter jet KAAN will take off before the end of 2023 and Turkiye will build a next-generation aircraft carrier.
"We have began working to build a next-generation aircraft carrier that will be the big brother of the TCG Anadolu. We are constantly improving ourselves in every field from unmanned systems to air defense, armored land vehicles to electronic warfare capabilities," President Erdogan emphasized.
"After reducing our country's foreign dependency in this field from 80 percent to 20 percent in the last 21 years, we will definitely reach our goal of a fully independent Turkiye in the defense industry," Erdogan noted.
Set to be Turkiye's flagship carrier, the multipurpose amphibious assault ship TCG Anadolu represents a symbol of Turkiye's progress in the field of defense, Erdogan said.
"The TCG Anadolu is the world's first warship in its field, on which UAVs can land and take off," Erdogan said in April, stressing that the vessel would host many of Turkiye's manned and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Erdogan also noted that work was ongoing on KAAN, Turkiye's 5th generation national fighter jet which is set to take off before the end of 2023. Meanwhile, testing process of Bayraktar TB3, a next-generation unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), is continuing successfully, Erdogan said.
Source: Newsroom
