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Pakistan, Türkiye Reportedly Discuss Developing a Helicopter
Pakistan and Türkiye reportedly discussed the possibility of jointly designing and producing a helicopter.
The reports originated from multiple Turkish news outlets, which claimed that the proposal was discussed during the 8th Pak-Turk Industrial Fair Joint Working Group Meeting, which began this week at Pakistan’s National Aerospace Science and Technology Park (NASTP).
The Pak-Turk Joint Working Group (JWG) is a semi-annual summit involving multiple top ministries as well as state-owned and private enterprises from both countries.
Additionally, Turkish media outlets reported that the potential sale of the KAAN to Pakistan, which is Türkiye’s next-generation fighter aircraft (NGFA), was also discussed.
Regarding the helicopter, it is currently not known if it would be a civil or military platform, but given that this iteration of the Pak-Turk JWG mostly involved defence contractors – including Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) – it would likely be the latter.
A Call Back to the T129 ATAK Program
In 2018, Pakistan had ordered 30 T129 ATAK attack helicopters from TAI. However, the deal fell through due to the United States’ reluctance to approve re-export licenses for the ATAK’s LHTEC T800 turboshaft engines.
In 2020, it was widely believed that the Pakistan Army Aviation Corps (PAA) would acquire the Chinese Z-10ME in lieu of both the T129 and the Bell-Textron AH-1Z. The latter deal fell through because Washington refused to release the Foreign Military Support (FMS) money which Pakistan intended to use to finance the deal.
In 2021, the Head of Türkiye’s Presidency of the Defence Industry (SSB), Dr. Ismail Demir, stated that Pakistan gave a six-month extension (adding to a previous year-long agreement) for TAI to sort out an alternative arrangement.
Türkiye’s Indigenous Engine Opens New Possibilities
One significant factor developed since the collapse of the T129 deal; the new emergence of Türkiye’s indigenous turboshaft engine, the Tusaş Engine Industries (TEI) TS1400.
Türkiye initiated the development of the TS1400 in 2017 with the aim of reducing its reliance on foreign turboshaft engines, particularly from the U.S. TEI estimated that the development of the TS1400 would take about eight years.
In 2020, TEI tested the TS1400’s core. In 2023, the TS1400 was successfully test-flown from a TAI T625 Gökbey utility helicopter, which was indigenously developed by TAI.
Since then, the TS1400 has undergone certification tests, with its latest one successfully occurring in June 2024 for the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) CS-E 740 endurance test requirements.
Through 15 consecutive six-hour endurance tests (meeting the CS-E 740 requirement), the TS1400 achieved a power rating of 1,740 shp (or 1,279 kW).
International certification of the TS1400 is expected to be completed by 2026, aligning with the eight-year roadmap TEI set for developing the engine.
It is possible that both sides are discussing a potential joint helicopter program centered on TEI’s TS1400, which could amount to one of several potential outcomes.
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