Türkiye’s defence major Aselsan moved five spots up on Defense News’ annual “Top 100 Defence Companies List,”, from 47th last year to 42nd this year, but Ahmet Akyol, President & CEO of the company, has set his sights higher. Akyol...
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Türkiye’s defence major Aselsan moved five spots up on Defense News’ annual “Top 100 Defence Companies List,”, from 47th last year to 42nd this year, but Ahmet Akyol, President & CEO of the company, has set his sights higher.
Akyol says the company’s goal is to be one of the top 30 defence firms in the world by 2030. “It is an achievable goal if we continue our 10 percent growth rate and I am confident that we will,” Akyol said. “With nearly 11,000 employees, 16 local subsidiaries and 18 international offices, we are well-positioned to achieve even greater rankings.”
The exponential growth of the Turkish defence industry is one of the major reasons why Akyol is optimistic that Aselsan, producer of military electronics and defence systems, will reach its 2030 goal. “Turkey was earlier known for sub-systems, but over the last 4-5 years, many indigenous Turkish platforms such as aircraft, helicopters, UAVs and ships have been acquired and deployed with our payloads, not only by the Turkish military but also by many international customers. We can therefore showcase our combat-proven products to international customers. That is a big advantage.”
Aselsan’s defence revenue last year was nearly US$3 billion; the company registered a revenue growth of about 30% in 2023. Its total turnover reached US$3.2 billion, with defence accounting for 94% of the total. The company also secured new export contracts worth US$601 million and expanded its global footprint to 88 countries.
The first half of 2024, if anything, has turned out to be even better. During the period, Aselsan’s revenues reached 35.7 billion TL (over US$1 billion) with an 8% growth rate, while net profit grew by 133% to 3.6 billion TL. The total backlog of the company stands at US$12.3 billion, including US$2.6 billion worth of new contracts. Of the new contracts, international deals amount to US$365 million.
In July, the company made its debut as an exhibitor at the Farnborough Airshow, one of the two biggest tradeshows in the world, displaying capabilities in seven different technological areas such as electro-optical reconnaissance, surveillance, and targeting systems, radar systems, guided munitions, integrated avionics systems, communication systems, and electronic warfare (EW) systems.
“We are now ready to showcase our proven products in the air domain to the international market,” says Akyol. “We are looking to collaborate with international partners from friendly countries. We offer products that are not only superior in quality compared to that of the competition but also cost-effective.”
Aselsan is now among the world’s 10 fastest growing defence companies. In recent years, the company has had great success exporting its products to a growing list of countries. According to Akyol, Aselsan signed export deals for the first time for eight of its products, including Korkut, Cenk, Fersah, Aselflir 500, and Gozde. The company also exported its products to three new countries during the period.
On the home front, Aselsan delivered its ALP 300 G Portable Early Warning Radar System and its AESA Aircraft Nose Radar to the country’s security forces. Besides launching the 8×8 vehicle integrated version of the Korkut Air Defence Weapon System in Europe, the company equipped TÜRKSAT 6A with its advanced communication payloads and continued work on development of the Goksur Close in Air Defense System. Among the other milestones in the first half of the year were the completion of the extended range firing tests of its medium range Hisar-O missile, and the test of the Tolun guided munition fired from Akinci UCAV.
“With our vast range of products, we are equipped to support all platforms, including aircraft, helicopters, tanks, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), submarines, ships and even the space domain,” says Akyol. “We have a very vibrant and hardworking workforce; the average age of our employees is 34. In the next 30 years, we are going to progress significantly.”
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