Turkey may drop US F-16 purchase in favour of acquiring jet engines
Turkey may drop US F-16 purchase in favour of acquiring jet engines
Turkey may ask the United States to modify a multibillion dollar arms deal to aquire jet engines instead of F-16 warplanes and missiles, sources familiar with the issue told Middle East Eye.
Last year, Ankara scaled back its initial F-16 procurement plan, opting out of 79 modernisation kits and instead committing to purchase 40 F-16 Vipers with associated ammunition. This reduced the total value of the deal from $23bn to $7bn.
Now, some senior officials are pushing for further changes, scrapping the planned F-16 purchase and parts of the ammunition package entirely.
Instead, Turkey would prioritise investment in its domestically produced fifth-generation fighter jet, the Kaan, using the deal to obtain engines for the aircraft and prepare for a possible return to the US-led F-35 programme.
The issue is expected to come up during President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Washington on Thursday. It isn't clear whether Ankara will make the offer during the Oval Office meeting with US President Donald Trump.
However, some officials continue to argue that Turkey must immediately move ahead with purchasing the 40 F-16 Vipers to bolster its aging fleet.
Since the US government approved the original deal in early 2024, Turkey’s defence and security leadership has been divided over how best to replace the country’s aging F-16s.
'Instead of spending billions on F-16s, some in Ankara argue that the funds could be redirected to purchase F-16 engines, which are compatible with the Kaan'
- source
Ankara’s exclusion from the F-35 program in 2019, following its acquisition of Russian-made S-400 air defence systems, has left officials grappling with the prospect of an acute fighter jet shortage in the years ahead.
While the Turkish air force has expressed a willingness to procure any available aircraft, including F-16s, Eurofighters or F-35s, Turkey’s top defence procurement body and key domestic producers maintain that Ankara must be more selective.
Proponents of this view favour modernising Turkey’s existing F-16 fleet with rapidly advancing local technologies, avoiding what they see as costly “stopgap” solutions until the Kaan enters service.
A Turkish consortium aims to deliver the first Kaan jets by late 2028, though many analysts believe deliveries may slip closer to 2030.
“Instead of spending billions on F-16s, some in Ankara argue that the funds could be redirected to purchase F-16 engines, which are compatible with the Kaan,” one source familiar with the debate said.
The first Kaan aircraft will be powered by General Electric’s F110 engines, the same used in F-16s, though Turkey ultimately plans to develop a domestic engine model for deliveries in the 2030s.
Some officials are also wary of restrictions that could come with US-supplied F-16s, as Washington could potentially bar Ankara from integrating its own domestically produced payloads.
In recent years, Turkey has excelled in developing indigenous weapon systems, ranging from cruise missiles to guided munitions, that can be paired with fighter jets.
Defence Minister Yasar Guler confirmed last November that Ankara has already made a $1.4bn down payment toward the F-16s.
However, other officials argue that Turkey should prioritise rejoining the F-35 programme, which could immediately boost its fighter jet capability.
Unlike F-16s or Eurofighters, which face years-long production backlogs, six F-35s originally built for Turkey remain in storage and could be transferred quickly if Ankara is readmitted. Guler has also said that Turkey ultimately aims to acquire 40 F-35s.
But Turkey’s shifting demands for amendments to the F-16 deal have raised concerns within the US administration.
A Washington-based source told MEE that the Pentagon has insisted it will not reopen discussions on the F-35 until the F-16 agreement is finalised. The source said that it was unlikely that the US would accept selling jet engines instead of F-16s as it was a sealed deal.
Turkey's potential return to the F-35 programme is also strategically significant in the context of the balance of power in the eastern Mediterranean.
Greece is set to receive its first F-35s in 2028, while Turkey’s aging F-16 fleet continues to present operational challenges.
However, regional actors, chiefly Israel, but also Greece, are lobbying Washington to block the sale. Israel has long maintained a de facto veto over US arms sales to Middle Eastern countries to preserve its qualitative military edge.
