During the visit of a group of 250 people consisting of students and Foundation donors to the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ) facilities on September 28, 2017, for the 30th anniversary of the Turkish Armed Forces Foundation (TSKGV), President & CEO of TUSAŞ, Prof. Dr. Temel KOTİL made the first public announcement of the ATAK-II Project and said, "The current ATAK helicopter is 5 tons. We also started a larger 8-ton ATAK Helicopter Project as a concept." Also, on October 3, 2017, about a week after KOTIL's announcement, President of Defense Industries (SSB) Prof. Dr. İsmail DEMİR made a speech at the Alp Aviation Helicopter Business Center Opening Ceremony and pointed out that the helicopter would be in the 6-ton class. DEMİR said, "I would like to announce that the design process of a heavier and more agile helicopter, which will be the big brother of the ATAK helicopter, has started." The first CGI renders of ATAK-II were released to the public by TUSAŞ at the end of October 2017.

At first, the empty weight of the ATAK-II was planned to be 6 tons with a maximum takeoff weight of 8 tons; thus, two 2,000 shaft-horsepower (shp) turboshaft engines would be able to provide sufficient power. This demand could be met through the T700-TEI-701D Turboshaft Engine manufactured under license at the TEI facilities with a 61% national contribution rate under the T70 Turkish Utility Helicopter Program (TUHP), as well as through a new version of the TS1400 that could generate 2,000shp with a design change (TS1400 can produce 1,660shp for 30 seconds in case of an emergency or a single engine shut down). In a statement he gave for ATAK-II in June 2018, TEI General Manager Mahmut AKŞİT stated that the T700-TEI-701D Engine could be used on a national platform after a series of design changes. The T700-TEI-701D Engine was able to meet the power requirements of ATAK-II, which was projected as 6-8 tons. Besides, Turkey also has the right to make changes to the engine. Therefore, it would be possible to use the engine in ATAK-II by making the necessary changes to the engine for ATAK-II and adding these changes to the license agreement after reaching a deal with General Electric.