On Wednesday (February 21), Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) made the first 13-minute flight of the domestic fighter Kaan at the Multtide airport in the capital Ankara.
The first domestic fifth-generation fighter is intended to replace the aging fleet of the Turkish army.
Prior to the first flight, the Kaan fighter underwent launch seat tests, full-length static tests, control surface static tests, landing gear tests, avionics system tests, fuel tests, engine start tests and taxiing tests.
The flight was carried out by Turkish test pilot Barbaros Demirbas.
Turkey has entered another critical stage in the production of its own fifth-generation fighter, said Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "In the coming period, we will continue to bring new good news to our country in the field of defense industry," he said on X. ”
The head of Turkish Aerospace Industries, Temer Kotil, said on X that the Kaan stayed in the air for 13 minutes and reached a speed of 8000 knots at an altitude of 230 feet.
The Minister of Industry and Technology of Turkey, Mohammad Fatih Qasir, also said on X: "The steel wings of the Turks took to the skies!" ”
According to the head of the Turkish Defense Industry Agency, Halouk Gorgon, Turkey has made another development that will be one of the milestones in the defense industry. "With Kaan, we will bring not only fifth-generation fighters, but also technologies that few countries in the world have," he said. ”
Kaan will be able to conduct air-to-air combat with a new generation ** and deliver precision strikes from internal ** pylons at supersonic speeds, and will also increase combat effectiveness with the support of artificial intelligence and neural networks.
This latest development makes Turkey one of the few countries that have the technology. The project for the aircraft began in 2016 and was launched in March 2023.
In May 2023, Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the name of the aircraft "Kaan".