On 14 March 2025, Turkish Aerospace Pakistan successfully conducting the maiden test flight of “IQBAL,” a locally developed technology demonstrator.
Named in honor of Pakistani national poet, Dr. Allama Muhammad Iqbal, the IQBAL demonstrator is a 1:7 dynamically scaled version of the Turkish Aerospace KAAN fifth-generation fighter jet (FGFA).
The six-minute test flight showcased the engineering design and development capacity TAI is developing at its subsidiary in Pakistan.
Turkish Aerospace views the PAF as a target customer for the KAAN FGFA and, for a time, it had seemed that the PAF was interested in the project. But with the PAF’s apparent decision to commit to the Chinese J-31/J-35, its interest in the KAAN is, at best, now questionable. It is unclear if the PAF will circle back to the KAAN, at least before a true ITAR-free variant with Turkish engines is available.
That said, Turkish Aerospace’s other equipment, such as the T625 utility helicopter and/or T129 ATAK attack helicopter, could still be of interest to the Pakistani armed forces. In fact, the two sides had discussed collaborating on a helicopter program in January, while Turkish Aerospace signed a memorandum-of-understanding (MoU) to collaborate with Pakistan’s Naval Research and Development Institute (NRDI).
Thus, there could be a scenario where Turkish Aerospace offers an offset deal for a potential helicopter deal, for example. In this sense, Turkish Aerospace’s Pakistani footprint could expand to include maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facilities and services, or even a production line of some type.
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