According to Defense Minister Vecdi Gönül, Turkey's share in the production of its defense products has now reached 41.1 percent. But it is not yet clear whether that figure represents the domestic manufacturing of high-tech defense equipment. Nevertheless, both Turkish and the Western defense industrialists say there have been visible improvements in the level of domestic production of defense equipment, though local production of high-tech products will take time and an increase in the resources allocated to Turkey's research and development (R&D) projects. According to data released by the Turkish Statistics Institute (TurkStat) on Nov. 13, Turkey's R&D expenditures totaled YTL 6.91 billion in 2007, representing just 0.007 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).
Meanwhile, Turkish companies’ increased involvement in the production of certain parts of the US-led F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program set a good example for how local businesses can succeed when they are encouraged by the state to develop local products in the highly sensitive defense sector, a Turkish defense source said. Turkey plans to buy 100 JSFs at a cost of around $10 billion. The planes are scheduled to enter Turkey’s inventory in 2015 and will replace its F-16 and F-4 fighters, which will be gradually phased out of use
Gönül said recently that Turkish participation in the F-35 program has reached around $5.5 billion. In the past several weeks, Turkish companies have begun to deliver or produce the parts for the JSFs under agreements signed earlier with both Lockheed Martin, the leading company in the production of F-35s, and with other companies playing a major role in their production..
Kale begins to produce sophisticated parts
Kale Aerospace, a Turkish company, has launched plants worth a total of $50 million in Tuzla, a suburb of İstanbul, to start the production of 300 different JSF parts. “Kale got the biggest order to produce sophisticated high-technology machinery for F-35s,” a Western defense industrialist close to the deal said.
Kale will begin the production F-35 wings, bodies and engines, said Osman Okyay, head of the Kale group’s Chemical Industries division, during the opening ceremony of a new facility on Nov. 16.
The only private aerospace company with 100 percent of its shares owned by domestic investors, Kale has transformed its ability to process sensitive metals for the aerospace sector through the production of parts for F-35s, he said.
The Kale group has also been manufacturing fuel pieces for JSF F135 engines for Pratt and Whitney as part of the JSF program under a $130 million deal it signed in 2006, in addition to the work share it got directly from Lockheed Martin. In addition, Kale Aerospace has been producing parts for Lockheed Martin GMLRS and ATACMS missile systems since 1997.
Gönül said during the opening ceremony of Kale’s Tuzla facility that it has not just been the companies with shares in the Foundation to Strengthen the Turkish Armed Forces (TSKGV), but also private sector companies that have begun to play a significant role in the creation of a national aviation infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Alp Aviation, a private Turkish company, has produced its first fan-rotor rear hub to be fitted on Pratt and Whitney F135 engines. Tuncer Alpata, president of Alp Aviation, said during the delivery ceremony, held on Nov. 17, that the company had made a $4 million investment at its Eskişehir facilities in order to produce these new parts. Alp Aviation will also assign some work share to the country’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as part of its offset programs, he said. The Turkish Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry (SSM) has long pursued a policy of directing work from offsets to SMEs to protect this sector from further impact from economic crises.
Industry and Trade Minister Zafer Çağlayan said on Nov. 17 that the government will give 12-month loans with zero interest to artisans, craftsmen and SMEs as part of its efforts to minimize the effects of the current global financial crisis. Çağlayan noted that the Small and Medium Industry Development Organization (KOSGEB) will extend financial support to small businesses with a further YTL 350 million in loans, stressing that the government was already supporting small businesses. “We recently approved giving $349 million in loans with zero interest to 3,584 exporters,” he added. Meanwhile, William Gostic, vice president of Pratt and Whitney, said during the recent delivery ceremony that the delivery represented a turning point both for the Turkish aviation industry, Alp Aviation and Pratt and Whitney.
Alp Aviation will produce fan rotor rear hubs for all three models of F-35 fighters, he said. In a related development, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAİ
opened a new advanced composites manufacturing facility in Ankara on Nov. 7 to support its role as a major subcontractor for Northrop Grumman on the F-35 program. “The 72,000-square-foot facility, which represents a major upgrade of TAİ’s existing composites manufacturing facilities, will enable the company to produce composite structures and subassemblies for the F-35’s centre fuselage, one of the aircraft’s most complicated assemblies,” a statement released by TAI said, adding, “It also positions TAI to fulfill its commitment to produce up to 400 centre fuselages for the F-35 program”
TAİ Chairman Atalay Efeer added that the opening of the new facility was a major first step by TAİ in demonstrating Turkey’s commitment to the success of the F-35. In February 2007, TAİ and Northrop Grumman signed a letter of intent authorizing TAI to be a second-source supplier of center fuselages for the F-35. Northrop Grumman, a principal subcontractor to prime F-35 contractor Lockheed Martin, is responsible for producing the center fuselage for all three F-35 variants. Turkish Air Forces Commander Gen. Aydoğan Babaoğlu, meanwhile, said during the ceremony at TAİ that F-35s will begin to make up the main assault force of the air forces, together with F-16s, as of 2015. The new technologies in the F-35s, as well as the logistic systems based on performance, a new logistics concept applied by Turkey, have also influenced the ongoing restructuring of the air forces, as well as its infrastructure work, he added.
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19-02-2009, 16:33
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