Interview: Dr Mehmet Demiroğlu, General Manager, Turkish Aerospace

: Feb 18, 2025 - : 3:45 am

Turkish Aerospace is displaying a full-size mockup of its Hurkus turboprop trainer at the ongoing IDEX, with the intent to explore market opportunities in the region. Speaking to Atul Chandra, GBP Daily News Editor, at the show, Dr Mehmet Demiroğlu,...

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Turkish Aerospace is displaying a full-size mockup of its Hurkus turboprop trainer at the ongoing IDEX, with the intent to explore market opportunities in the region.

Speaking to Atul Chandra, GBP Daily News Editor, at the show, Dr Mehmet Demiroğlu, General Manager, Turkish Aerospace, outlined the company’s ambitions for its trainer aircraft and also provided an update on Spain’s decision to opt for the Hurjet.

Edited excerpts from the interview:

Please provide an update on Spain's selection of Hurjet?

We have made a lot of progress and things are going well. Everybody is happy with the progress. We are now actively working on incorporating the specific Spanish requirements. So we are very happy overall, and of course for the fact that Hurjet has been selected by an important NATO air force. This is a huge achievement in itself. When we complete the contract signing and then the first delivery, we will be very happy.

The advanced avionics on the Hurjet, which also has a Large Area Display, was one of the key factors in our victory in this competition. Another important aspect was the supersonic capability of the aircraft and the fact that it is powered by the same engine type as the one used on Spanish F-18s. This is an engine that they are familiar with and have a deep understanding of, besides having the MRO capability. So all these factors, combined with the excellent relationship between Turkey and Spain and the existing strong bilateral cooperation between the two nations in the defence and civil sector, helped us.

You are showcasing the Hurkus basic trainer in the UAE. What is the market potential for the type here?

Here in the UAE, there is the Calidus B-250 that has been indigenously developed. So, we are in communication with Calidus, not only to collaborate on different technologies but also on the local production of Hurkus. They are asking our help with the manufacture of some components for the B-250 and we have told them that we are happy to discuss it. Of course, we would like to market and sell our own aircraft, but then it is not always about selling things. It is also about creating a collaboration and partnership.

We hope that the Hurjet will have a market here as it is a step up from the Hurkus. We are also developing a light attack version, which we are confident will have strong market demand. We are discussing the Hurjet with the UAE. When it comes to the Hurjet, we are hoping to sell atleast 300 aircraft in the future.

Turkish-aerospace / Idex-2025 / Dr-mehmet-demiroglu /

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