National Combat Aircraft (TF-X/MMU) on Display at the Singapore Airshow

The mock-up of Turkey’s landmark national fighter was exhibited at the Singapore Airshow, as the country seeks to expand its defence engagement in the region. It marks the first time that the jet has been showcased in the Asian market, its developer, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), said in a statement.

The biennial event has bookended the pandemic, with the 2020 edition disrupted by the virus emerging from China and the latest show coming as the industry attempts to plot a way out of what became its biggest and most costly crisis.

TUSAŞ is also exhibiting 1/7 mock-up models of other platforms it has developed. The indigenous aircraft is being developed to replace the Turkish air force’s F-16 fighters as they are gradually phased out by the 2030s. The TF-X/MMU will be unveiled for the first time on March 18, 2023, and is scheduled to make its maiden flight in 2026.

TUSAŞ has been in an endeavor to expand collaborations in the Asian market in new generation technologies, particularly in the field of the defence industry and aviation.

The company in November opened an engineering and design office in Malaysia, its first in Southeast Asia. It has expanded its reach by establishing more than ten technology offices around the world.