Turkey Sets Direction for Indigenous Fighter Engine

In recent months, the Head of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) – Dr. İsmail Demir – and the CEO of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) – Dr. Temel Kotil – outlined the progress the country is making with its next-generation fighter aircraft (NGFA), the TF/MMU.

According to Dr. Kotil, TAI has approximately 1,300 engineers involved in the TF/MMU. He discussed how modern advances in technology have shortened previously longer developmental processes. As a result, the first TF/MMU prototype will roll-out from the hangar by 18 March 2023. TAI is working to deliver the first TF/MMU to the Turkish Air Force by 2028. This is a relatively short timeframe.

TAI also contracted BAE to assist with the design and development process. This was part of a 2017 accord worth over £100 million. In 2021, Dr. İsmail Demir confirmed that BAE teams have been participating with their TAI counterparts in the development process. Moreover, TAI already cut the steel of the prototype TF/MMU aircraft by February 2021. Turkey is already building significant infrastructure (e.g., wind-tunnels and other facilities) to support the marque – and evidently maturing – defense program.[1]

However, both Demir and Kotil reiterated that the TF/MMU’s engine is currently the most critical issue of the fighter program. Ultimately, Turkey is aiming to design, develop, and manufacture its own powerplant to power the TF/MMU. In other words, it does not want to be dependent on any foreign supplier for the fighter’s key inputs, including the engine but also other subsystems (e.g., radar, munitions, etc).

That said, Turkey will rely on a foreign powerplant for the TF/MMU prototypes and, potentially, the initial production block of the fighter aircraft. TAI had previously discussed that the GE F110, which powers the Turkish Air Force’s F-16s, will be used during the prototype and initial block stages. But recently, Dr. Demir revealed that Turkey is working to secure engines from alternate sources. Dr. Demir emphasized that he would not reveal the source. Considering how the TF/MMU prototypes would use the GE F110, the other engine could potentially be the Chinese WS-10-series or the Russian AL-31-series. Outside of the PW F100 – i.e., another American engine – there are no other comparable engines of the F110’s size.[2]

However, Dr. Demir also revealed that a previous possibility, i.e., a collaborative effort with Rolls-Royce to jointly design and develop a new powerplant – is also back on the table.[3] The private Turkish company Kale Group was going to work with Rolls-Royce on an original engine. However, the program was unable to take-off due to disagreements regarding intellectual property (IP) ownership and other factors. But Dr. Demir outlined that Turkey and the United Kingdom had made new progress on this front. Thus, one may potentially see Turkey develop a new turbofan engine in collaboration with Britain.

That said, the center of Turkey’s indigenous plans is TR Motor. The SSB’s SSTEK A.Ş. jointly established TR Motor in partnership with the private Turkish conglomerate BMC. However, at some later point, TAI took total control of TR Motor (i.e., BMC is no longer part of the entity).

Thus, TAI now directly owns a significant portion of the TF/MMU’s technology stack. TAI is responsible for the development of both the airframe and the engine. Recently, Dr. Kotil revealed that the development work for the TR Motor engine is fully underway.[4]

Dr. Kotil said that the most difficult part of turbofan development is the turbine:

The most difficult part of making an engine is the turbine part. A single crystal is also required in the turbine part. When a single crystal is used, the strengths are high. The thermal efficiency increases at high temperatures.[5]

In other words, Turkey would need to develop its crystal technology where it can cast blades that properly withstand the high temperatures and rotations of turbofan engines. Fortunately, Dr. Kotil is confident that Turkey can develop this technology. It already built the crystal blade for its indigenous turboshaft engine.[6]

Overall, Dr. Kotil believes that TAI and TR Motor will develop the indigenous engine in about 10 years. In other words, they are aiming to deliver the TF/MMU with the indigenous engine sometime in the 2030s. However, Dr. Kotil emphasized that TAI could potentially shorten the timeline if the SSB strikes deals with other partners to help accelerate the program. But interestingly, for Turkey, the question of an indigenous engine is a matter of “when” and not “if.” Its leaders seem confident that the existing foundation is good enough to initiate the development process, albeit with a longer timeline.

The next major phase of the TF/MMU program would involve securing program partners who will commit to ordering the aircraft. To date, the Turks have signalled that they are interested in having several states join, especially Muslim-majority countries such as Pakistan, Malaysia, Qatar, Indonesia, and Azerbaijan.

In a sense, the indigenous engine program is likely a critical part of attracting those partners. For example, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) stated that it is open to joining a multi-national consortium for its own next-generation fighter aircraft (NGFA) program. However, the PAF also said that the program must be free of ITAR components, especially critical inputs, such as engines.[7] At this point, there is no scenario where the PAF would invest in a high-cost program like a fighter without it being an ITAR-free solution.

Inviting the likes of Pakistan and others helps drive economies-of-scale and, in turn, lower the unit cost of each TF/MMU by dividing the R&D overhead across more units. Co-production and sourcing from lower cost regions could potentially drive the price of each TF/MMU down further. On numerous occasions, the PAF suggested that it would be interested in the TF/MMU.[8] However, it has not signed a formal accord or agreement about partnering or procuring the fighter as of this time. That said, TAI has begun delegating some TF/MMU-related work to its subsidiary and partners in Pakistan.

Of course, Turkey certainly has its own strategic interests. By controlling the end-to-end technology stack of the TF/MMU, Turkey prevents any foreign power from interfering with the program. Thus, the TR Motor program directly supports Turkey’s national security interests. However, the indigenous engine would also open up a potentially significant commercial avenue for the Turkish aerospace industry.

The status and health of Russia’s NGFA programs are unclear, especially in light of the Ukraine War. Thus, it is unlikely that Russia will be much of a factor in driving NGFA sales from the East. If anything, China will be the leading supplier of not only Eastern-origin fighters, but ITAR-free NGFAs in general. Like drones, it is possible that the Turks could carve the non-American/European NGFA fighter with the Chinese. Thus, a homegrown engine is absolutely critical to unlocking that market potential.

[1] Interview with Dr. İsmail Demir, Head of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB). Defense Here. 27 February 2021. URL: https://www.defensehere.com/tr/ssb-baskani-i-smail-demir–ssb-nin-uzay-calismalarini-defensehere-a-anlatti

[2] “Demir: There are three Alternative Engines for TF-X.” TurDef. 05 March 2022. URL: https://www.turdef.com/Article/demir-there-are-three-alternative-engines-for-tf-x/1387

[3] Ibid.

[4] “Milli savaş uçağı yerli motor ile teslim edilecek.” TRT Haber. 26 March 2022. URL: https://www.trthaber.com/haber/bilim-teknoloji/milli-savas-ucagi-yerli-motor-ile-teslim-edilecek-667226.html

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Alan Warnes. Interview with Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan. Jane’s defence Weekly. 22 May 2019.

[8] Amir Zia. Interview of Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman. Bol Narratives. 01 April 2017