Turkey’s Pursuit of Modern Fighter Jets

 

As is well known, Turkey has been striving for some time to acquire fifth-generation fighter jets.

After purchasing the Russian-made S-400 air defense systems, Turkey was expelled from the U.S.-led F-35 program, of which it had been a partner.

This created a difficult situation for Ankara and sparked new concerns.

The F-16 fighter jets currently in the Turkish Air Force are aging, and Turkey has been making efforts to modernize them.

However, even in this regard, the country has not been able to achieve its full objectives.

After being excluded from the F-35 program, Turkey once again turned to the United States — this time to acquire the older-generation F-16s, which are already in its inventory.

For a while, diplomatic contacts with Washington had created optimism that Turkey might eventually obtain these aircraft.

However, it now appears that the United States is not particularly eager to sell fighter jets to Turkey.

The fact that Turkey has recently moved toward purchasing new European-made aircraft confirms this assessment.

A Critical Situation for Turkey

The situation is becoming increasingly critical for Turkey.

The first factor is that Greece has been modernizing its air fleet, particularly by acquiring French-made Rafale jets, potentially giving it an edge over Turkey.

The second factor is the recent Israel–Iran war, during which Israeli F-35 fighters demonstrated overwhelming superiority.

Within a short period, Israel destroyed Iran’s entire air defense network, and within just a few days, gained full control of Iranian airspace.

Given that both Greece and Israel — with whom tensions have been running high — are seen as potential threats, the situation has become even more delicate for Turkey.

The Eurofighter Purchase

For a long time, Turkey has been attempting to purchase Eurofighter Typhoon jets.

However, Germany — and to some extent France — have been reluctant to approve such a sale.

The United Kingdom, on the other hand, has been Turkey’s closest ally throughout this process and has supported the idea from the beginning.

Eventually, the British Prime Minister visited Turkey today, and during this visit, it was decided that around twenty aircraft — currently active within the Royal Air Force — would be sold to Turkey.

In total, Turkey will acquire approximately forty aircraft from the United Kingdom, Qatar, and Oman.

These jets are not new; all of them are second-hand.

Why, then, is Turkey buying second-hand jets instead of brand-new ones?

There are two reasons:

First, Turkey urgently needs to strengthen its air fleet, and acquiring available aircraft immediately is seen as an acceptable solution.

Second, new aircraft will indeed be purchased later, but since production takes time, it is more practical at this stage to acquire operational second-hand jets rather than wait for new ones.

Strategic Implications

Eurofighter Typhoons are not fifth-generation fighters like the F-35s.

However, Turkey seems aware of the importance of adding new aircraft to its air force — or perhaps this is simply the only viable option for now.

What is particularly noteworthy in this process is the United Kingdom’s strong willingness to meet Turkey’s needs — even at the cost of reducing its own fleet.

The reason is quite straightforward: the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

In a scenario where the United States could potentially distance itself from NATO, the United Kingdom is taking very seriously the possibility that the war in Ukraine might eventually spill over into other parts of Europe.

For London, maintaining a strong relationship with Turkey, a key NATO member, has become strategically vitalf.

From the British diplomatic perspective, providing Turkey with fighter jets serves multiple purposes:

It strengthens NATO’s southern flank, keeps Turkey closely aligned with the alliance, and helps soften the tensions caused by Washington’s strained approach toward Ankara.

The Road Ahead

What happens next remains to be seen.

However, one thing is clear: sooner or later, NATO is likely to pressure Turkey into making a strategic choice.

During President Erdoğan’s recent visit to the United States, American officials expressed their expectation that Turkey would reduce trade with Russia — particularly its imports of Russian natural gas.

At this stage, such a move seems unlikely.

There are both economic and strategic reasons for this.

Turkey currently has no major conflicts with Russia; on the contrary, it relies heavily on Russia for energy supply and tourism.

For Moscow, maintaining good relations with Ankara is equally important.

For a Russia that is nearly in open confrontation with NATO, avoiding a direct clash with Turkey is the most rational scenario.

For Turkey, this decision will be extremely difficult.

As a NATO member, it is expected to participate in potential alliance operations.

For instance, following recent Russian airspace incursions in the Baltic region, NATO has strengthened its air defense systems there — and Turkey has actively supported this mission with its radar aircraft.

Turkey thus finds itself in a highly sensitive position, trying to maintain its obligations as a NATO member while keeping stable relations with its powerful neighbor, Russia.

The coming period will require extremely delicate diplomacy.

How this process evolves — and what opportunities or challenges it brings for Turkey — remains to be seen.

İsmet Tuncer