In the light of all these studies, the sector started 2007 with a growing trend. 352 million dollars defense exportation of 2006 is progressing approximately to 500 million dollars and parallel to this, 1.7 billion dollars production capacity is rising through 2 billion dollars.
As a result of the efforts taken by the Undersecretariat of Defense Industry, defense industry in Turkey has become self-sufficient in many areas. Platforms that are not produced in Turkey, like planes and submarines are the projects that even leading countries prefer to implement through consortiums and we aim at supplying the needs of Turkish Armed Forces by affiliating Turkish industry a member to international consortiums for these projects.
There are many projects that Undersecretariat for defence industries initiated with Turkish Defense Industry firms at the beginning of 2007 in the context of the needs of Turkish Armed Forces. These signed projects are as follows:
The Mobile Floating Assault Bridge Project with FNSS based on the need of Land Forces Command, Search and Rescue Ship Project with RMK Marine working with Koç Group, 16 Modern Patrol Boat Project with Dearsan Shipbuilding Firm, 1 Radar Jamming and Deception Simulator (RAKAS) and 1 Warfare Jamming and Deception Simulator (MUKAS) Project with Vestel Defense Co., Fast Intervention Patrol Boat Project based on the need of Naval Forces Command with Yonca Onuk Firm, Project on the Supply and Integration of Naval Warfare Systems in cooperation with Aselsan&Havelsan and Undersecretariat of Defense Industry within the context of National Ship (MİLGEM) Project, Avionic Modernization Project of 69 T-38A Training Planes with TUSAŞ Aviation and Space Industry Co. (TAI), Co-production Project of 50 ATAK helicopters in Turkey under the subcontraction of AqustaWestland and TAI being the main contractor.
On the other hand, accession to Production and Logistic Support Phase of Joint Strike (JSF) project which takes place among our common international cooperation projects was achieved and a Memorandum of Understanding was signed within the context of the project between the two countries. With aforementioned and other project activities, Undersecretariat for Defence Industries aims at bringing in new investment opportunities and new technologic abilities.
As it has been already mentioned above, Turkish defense industry had reached the level of designing, developing its genuine products and get into competition in the international arena. So, our goal is to improve strategically important defense abilities and reach to a self-sufficient level by increasing domestic needs supply ratio with %50 until 2010, which is already %37 (it was %25 in the year 2003 and reached %37 in 2006) with the help of reserving more resources to Research and Development programs and prioritizing original design projects in the provision of defense.
The Undersecreteriat has started planning works by placing itself among 11 pilot institutions to prepare its strategic plans through Undersecreteriat of State Planning Organization on June 14, 2005.
Strategic priorities within the context of this work were aimed to be result-focused, in the determination of strategic priorities there was not any limitations employed and issues were undertaken with a common opinion of the SPE. Areas that are seen necessary to achieve the vision from the present mission were listed by using brainstorming, after that, according to the results of the evaluations done on this list, supply management, industry and technology management, international cooperation and organizational structure were determined as strategic priorities.
With strategic planning works, on the one hand, transformation of strategies to operations in the frame of organizational roles and responsibilities, directing of the Undersecretariat towards pre-determined strategies by the formation of a synergy among service units, to put it in another way; making strategic management a continuous progress and embraced by all, and on the other hand to execute provisional activities in accordance with user expectations effectively, to make our defense industry reach to a level of international competition, to increase international cooperation opportunities in the field of defense industry and to build an effective organizational structure to do all of these were aimed.
In accordance with this goal, the expertise on project management, transparent, reliable and prone to change structure, the objective way of decision-making, the working style based on competence and shareholder-focused conception of service represents Undersecretariat ’s basic principals and values.
Abovementioned plan put forth by our Undersecretariat has a standing point quality for defense industry sector with a vision of being a leading expert provisional organization among the modernization abilities we had brought in to Turkish Armed Forces.

2008 Goals

When the goals of the year 2008 are considered, to make provisional activities more effective, it has been planned to realize feasibility studies related to the projects in the SHP in the light of PPBS process, to better provisional activities, to speed the process and to apply “Cost+” agreement in the three projects determined.
However, in the field of industry and technology management, to increase domestic compensation rates, sector and sub-sector strategy documents will be prepared with the participation of related parties. Adding to these, to increase subcontractors, which were qualified by main system producers in the supplier industry, it has been anticipated to be put into force the “Supplier Industry Integration Procedure” and to take steps towards increasing the work sharing given to the SMEs.
It has been planned to prepare Exportation Strategy in the Defense Industry in 2008 according to the goal of increasing defense product and service export to 1 billion dollars and in this scope, forming of induced credit mechanism is foreseen.
Besides, participation to multi-party projects will be encouraged by emphasizing concrete cooperation opportunities in the international arena in the year 2008. Plus, activities and projects on the increase of the effectiveness and share in the bids by NATO agents of the Turkish defense industry.
Adding to the subjects mentioned above, there are many activities planned to be realized on organizational field. As we have emphasized in our principles and values, our activities on education and career development will continue, for we know that; to be an “expert” organization, we have to invest in people, who are the basic source of knowledge.
Ongoing Projects…
National Tank Project: In accordance with the SSİK ruling dated March 2007, OTOKAR A.Ş. has been appointed Main Contractor candidate.
Subsequently, in accordance with the June and September 2007 SSİK ruling, it has been decided as follows;
Technical Support Enabler (TDS) candidate ROTEM/ADD (Republic of Korea),
Tank Fire Control System (TAKS) and Command Control Communication Information System (KKHBS) subcontractor ASELSAN A.Ş.,
120 mm. 55 caliber Main Weapon subcontractor MKE,
Armour subcontractor ROKETSAN A.Ş.
Considering the present situation, many actions have been taken in ongoing agreement negotiations, and the agreements are expected to be signed in March 2008.
The said agreements, UDI-Otokar being the main Agreement, will be signed between Otokar-Rotem, Otokar-Aselsan, Otokar-MKE, Otokar-Roketsan, MKE-Rotem and Roketsan-Rotem and to make sure needed infrastructure costs will be paid by UDI sub-agreements and for the weapon and armour production the agreements will be signed between UDI-MKE and UDI-Roketsan.
The ATAK Project: As you also know ATAK Program Agreement was signed on September 7, 2007. But, the agreement will be put into force as soon as the contractor firms fulfill the Advance pays requirements. In this context, pre-effect technical studies must have been done by TUSAŞ, Agusta Westland and ASELSAN, and for the sub-systems Government export licences are waited to be taken. The program is planned to be put into effect in March 2008. Besides, the determination works of some subsystems that would take place in the configuration of ATAK helicopters are continuing.
Within the frame of ATAK Project, we have become a partner to an air platform for the first time in Turkey and with ATAK Project any future work shares in a helicopter sale of that kind to any country is being determined beforehand. As stated before, since now TUSAŞ has the right to sell these helicopters worldwide, it has been aimed at being a helicopter seller for the first time. This is a milestone for Turkey’s helicopter vision and now we aim at producing genuine helicopter in Turkey in the next period.
The improvements on the naval platforms with the projects of National Ship, Coast Guard Search and Rescue Ship, Modern Patrol Boat
As known, military ship building industry in Turkey was accelerated with the military shipyards built for the maintenance and restoration of warships either bought or donated from outside the country. After the embargo in 1974, we adopted the idea that “we can build our ships in our own shipyards” and took extra investment on shipbuilding. In this scope, projects based on the building model of provision of package supplies and design from the main contractor and assault boat, frigate, submarines were built in the shipyards of our own military.
With the foundation of our Undersecreteriat in 1985, a new understanding in military ship construction projects was employed and Project models based on our local industry were started to be applied. Within this frame, Project models in which domestic or foreign main contractors responsible for designing and constructing and activating the ship were chosen with competition were initiated to be applied. In this period, mine hunter ships were started to be built with the realization of technology transfer in Istanbul Shipyard Command, whereas private sector shipyards built military ships/boats like tugboats, fuel tanks, immediate assault boats, cost guard boats.
Nonetheless, the supply of the assault boats’, frigates’, submarines’ designs by foreign firms; building of the ships in our military shipyards with foreign sourced package supplies by foreign firms’ technical support; inability to nationalize the design, supply and product limited domestic support with the labor only and foreign dependency in ship design and product technology continued.
Therefore, the project models aiming to acquire the capability of designing, constructing and integrating military ships were developed and the Coast Guard Search and Research Ship Project in which the domestic private sector shipyard took the responsibility of the designing, constructing and integrating with the support of foreign technical support was started in 2004. At the same period, the National Ship- Submarine Defense Warfare Reconnaissance Patrol Ship project, which aims to develop the design, construction and integration of corvette warfare ship by improving the existing capabilities, was started. The sustainability of the project models which aims to decrease the foreign dependency on the ship design, boat construction and the system production and integration by initiating Modern Patrol Boat Project which include designing, constructing, integrating and equipping 16 national patrol boats in domestic private sector shipyard in August 2005.
When we examine these projects closely;
National Ship (MILGEM) Project consists homemade designing, building, equipping and integration of 12 (4 of them optional) Antisubmarine Warfare and Scout Picket Ship which will perform reconnaissance and surveillance, target detection, identification and recognition, early warning missions and base and harbor defense, antisubmarine warfare, naval warfare, anti-air warfare, amphibious operation and guarding actions, based on the needs of Naval Forces Command. It is intended to integrate capabilities of military dockyards and private sector in designing and building ships, and equipping private sector with required knowledge, experience and infrastructure n the field of building battleships, in the scope of the project which will provide building, equipping and integration of the first ship in Istanbul Dockyard Command as a prototype and 11 ship in Istanbul Dockyard Command or dockyards of home private sector with maximum homemade contribution.
A project model was built in which all calendar responsibilities and responsibilities about designing, building, system integration, performance of the prototype ship are belongs to Naval Forces Command, and responsibility of system, material and service supply for designing and building belongs to Undersecretary of Defense Industry. With this model, the nationalization of design systems and subsystems in addition to the platform was stressed and production of the systems constitute the ship with maximum local contribution was aimed. In this framework, many systems in the project are developed nationally both by local companies and with R&D projects, the capabilities of our universities were utilized and companies were directed towards this field by scanning capabilities of our country.
At the present time, designing and building of “TCG HEYBELİADA”, the first ship in the scope of the project, is successfully going on. The ship is planned to launch on the anniversary day of Preveze Naval Victory, 27th September 2008, and to be approved in July 2011.
Coast Guard Search and Rescue Boat Project consists building and equipping 4 Search and Rescue Boats, which can achieve patrol, control, check, pollution prevention missions about search and rescue activities in the surrounding seas of our country even in bad weather and sea conditions, in domestic private dockyards for the needs of Coast Guard Command. In the coverage of the project, a contract was signed with RMK Marine Ship Construction Industry and Sea Transportation Enterprises Joint Stock Company.
In the coverage of this project founded by home/foreign state company credit, It is required for the contract to become valid that an agreement should be signed between Undersecretariat of Treasury and banks which will give the credit and this agreement should become valid. Until 2nd July 2007, RMK Marine met all validity requirements except the validity of credit agreements. The meetings between Undersecretariat of Treasury and credit supplier banks resulted on 13th February 2008 and credit agreements were signed. After the credit agreements become valid, the agreement, signed between our Undersecretariat and RMK Marine, will become valid.
In the framework of the project, from Italian Fincantieri Dockyard for 35 months, RMK Marine will transfer technology and know-how transfer including transfer of project management information about designing, building, equipping, installation, integration and testing activities, and quality assurance activities and taking technical support and assistance in order to gain required capabilities for meeting issues that can happen during designing, building, equipping, installation, integration, testing and trial guarantee period.
Modern Patrol Boat Project consists building and equipping 16 Modern Patrol Boats, which will carry out missions such as reconnaissance and surveillance, patrol and antisubmarine warfare, contribution to base and harbor defense function, detection, identification, classification and engagement to air, on water and underwater targets without performance loss in the straits, base and harbor approaching waters and close areas to the coasts; under the responsibility of local main contractor in domestic private sector dockyards for the needs of Naval Forces Command. In the coverage of the project, a contract was signed with DEARSAN Ship Construction Industry Joint Stock Company on 23rd August 2007.
With this project, Modern Patrol Boats that will have capabilities such as navigating securely in our territorial waters and international waters of surrounding seas, sustainability with high safety and less maintenance. In this project, local contribution will reach up to 69%, and boats will be certified according to hull, machine, electrical design, manufacture, construction and installation by Turkish Loydu, national classification institution. In this framework, successfully construction of these boats, which hava potential for high exportation potential with their mission functions, is very important for both modernization of our navy and development of our domestic military ship construction industry.
Modern Submarine Project
Modern Submarine Project consists construction of 6 submarines with air independent agitation system with maximum Turkish industrial contribution and with procured material packages in Naval Forces Command Gölcük Dockyard Command for the needs of Naval Forces Command. In the scope of the project, Offer Invitation File was published on 28th December 2006 and revised on 12th July 2007. Until 12th November 2007, 3 companies, DCNS (France), HDW/MFI Joint Venture (Germany) and NAVANTIA S.A. (Spain), gave offer, and evaluation studies on the offers are still in progress.
With the completion of Modern Submarine Project, Gölcük Dockyard Command will have information, experience and know-how about construction of submarine with air independent agitation system and will improve its infrastructure with new investments. In addition, many material and system required for the construction of submarines will be produced and integrated by local companies. And in this framework, existing capabilities at home will be effectively utilized in the scope of this project.
The Turkish Frigate TF 2000 project
TF-2000 Project consists procurement of 4 Anti – Air Warfare Frigates, which will provide survival against guided missiles, classic/modern ammunition delivered from aircrafts and other air elements, and will also contribute to command, control and communication, surveillance, early warning, reconnaissance and identification, on water warfare, underwater warfare, electronic warfare mission functions, for the needs of Naval Forces Command. At present, studies are in progress in order to form project model.
The competition between 3 Firms to get the GOKTURK Reconnaissance Surveillance Satellite System Project is continuing
With GÖKTÜRK Reconnaissance Surveillance Satellite System Project, carried out by Undersecretariat of Defense Industry, it is aimed procurement of a satellite system which can provide images of a region on the surface of earth with high resolution for military intelligence without geographical limitation, transfer of data of these images to the ground station in real/nearly real time, processing, storage, assessment and duplication of these collected data in electronic media, and can meet the need for imaging in many civil activities such as control of forest areas, monitoring shanty settlements, damage assessment in a short time after disaster, identification of yield and producing data for geographical maps; in accordance with technology transfer, joint development and joint usage principles.
With this aim;
1 electro –optic reconnaissance surveillance satellite which has better resolution than 1 mm and is located in low altitude and content of related satellite ground station will be supplied with the maximum usage of domestic capabilities and satellite will be delivered to its path in the space by chosen firm.
“Satellite Installation, Integration and Test Facility”, which will provide capability about installation, integration and testing of all satellites planned to produced in our country including communication satellites planned to be produced by TÜRKSAT Joint Stock Company; will be established in TAI Joint Stock Company facilities.
In the coverage of GÖKTÜRK Project, bidding progress is still going on among Undersecretariat of Defense Industry, EADS ASTRIUM Ltd. (UK), OHB-System AG (Germany) and TELESPAZIO S.p.A (Italy) Companies.
International Activies and Plans
When we look today, we see that a considerable defense industry infrastructure have been constructed in our country as a result of effort carried out. At present, except some big platforms, almost all needs of Turkish Armed Forces are supplied from our defense industry and these products can be exported abroad. Today, Turkish defense industry has trained work force and basic technologic infrastructure. With 3.5 billion dollars defense system procurement cost, our national defense market’s volume is equal to defense internal market’s volume of big European countries. It is important to make presence of Turkish defense industry felt in both home and world market by effective usage of resources. We have objective to increase our defense industry exportation, which was 352 million dollars, to 1 billion dollars in 2011. In this context, the most fundamental priority for us is giving importance to distinctive design and system integration projects and to have strong company structures became specialized in some certain fields in order to increase the exportation of Turkish defense industry and become in a competitor position in international platform. As a result of studies made in the last period, the fields to concentrate for distinctive design were identified according to strategic priorities. These fields are System Integration, Network-information-satellite- sensor systems, electronic warfare, and missile-guided-control systems. Parallel to this, a broad R&D program is applied to support domestic development projects in these subject fields.
The most important advantage of Turkey in the international arena is that all products we developed and produced in Turkey are used by one of the leading armies in the world, Turkish Armed Forces, and are in its inventory. We think that we have an important reference in exporting our self-designed defense industry products.
In the recent years, it is seen that some main defense industry products, manufactured in Turkey with both joint investment model and domestic capabilities, reached to a competitive position with price and quality in international market and as a result of this, main defense industry companies has more achievements in their contacts in abroad when compared to previous years. Our companies sold in especially fields of armored vehicles, radios, night vision systems, software, weapon and ammunition etc. They took orders for the next years and improved cooperation activities for this. Pedestal Mounted Stinger System, Low Altitude Air Defense System, manufactured by Aselsan, (to Holland), Frequency Hopping/Software Based Radios, manufactured by Aselsan (to Egypt and Pakistan), 122 mm Multi Rocket Launcher, manufactured by Roketsan (to United Arab Emirates), Armored Combat Vehicles, manufactured by FNSS (to United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Philippines, Saudi Arabia), Immediate Intervention and Speed Patrol Boats, manufactured by Yonca – Onuk (to Pakistan, Malaysia and Georgia), Simulators, manufactured by Havelsan (to S.Korea), Electronic Warfare Test and Training Area (EHTES) (to Pakistan) were among the exported products. So, the basic stage of exportation in defense industry is to have distinctive product profile.
On the other hand, in 2007, they had organized “Industrial Day/Workshop” with leading companies of Europe defense industry such as EADS and Finmeccanica, and “Workshop” with United Arab Emirates in order to expand to new markets and improve relations with existing markets. Thanks to this, defense industry representatives had an opportunity to discuss potential cooperation opportunities. Parallel to this, our “Workshop” activities will continue in 2008 in order to identify certain cooperation fields with some other countries.
In this context, with coordination with Undersecretariat of Defense Industry, they attend some main international fairs in order to be a base for these exportation activities and increase exportation of products and services of Turkish Defense Industry by providing government support in certain coordination. Therefore, effort for Fair is being used with long studies and given support by Turkish companies coming together in identified market regions with coordination with Undersecretariat of Defense Industry.
On the other hand, with the leading of Undersecretariat of Defense Industry, some formal exportation visits are being done in order to tell products of Turkish Defense Industry in a more effective way and improve cooperation activities with friend and allied countries. Pakistan, Egypt, Algeria, Ukraine, Qatar are among these countries. In the some way, it is planned to visit many other countries. In these visits, contacts with top-level suppliers of these countries and studies for cooperation potential are done with the participation of top level representatives of the sector.
The preparation of our web site in which we will collect all of our exportation activities is in progress. In this web site, it is planned to put announcements of international bidding activities that our companies can attend, up to date news and information about other exportation activities that are open to share.
We are also planning to continue our studies about publishing exportation strategy Document of SSM in 2008.
Turkey is a team player of the significant international projects
Competitive capacity of Turkish defense industry increased globally especially in the recent years and our companies became contractors in national procurement projects and reliable partners in many respectable international projects. Thanks to this kind of international projects began to form an effective working culture with the world aviation industry and infrastructure for new cooperation opportunities in the future.
Technological level of defense industry and international cooperation opportunities feed each other and have a triggering relationship. As its technological infrastructure improves, our industry strengthens its position as a suitable candidate for new partnerships, and as it attend in new international projects, it gets opportunity to improve its capabilities.
One of the most important features of international cooperation mentioned above is a result of not only big industrial institutions that are partnership of Foundation of Rehabilitation of Turkish Armed Forces, but also other small and medium companies’ becoming subcontractors known worldwide by keeping up with these improvements. Thanks to this, many very small and medium companies managed to be reliable partners for big companies with their specialized technological infrastructure, flexibility coming from being small and the most importantly with their philosophy of work digested global competition rules.
In the mentioned projects such as Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) and A400M transporter, our aviation industry signed in very successful partnerships. Activities about integration of our industry to international industry, its ability to get more business, getting technology and capability with these businesses and providing the most of the money paid to turn back to our country in these projects, is still in progress. For example, some special mechanisms such as establishing a Industrial Coordination Team which provides healthy continuation of information flow and coordination of domestic industry, and “developing domestic industry supporting fund” in order to support infrastructure investments of domestic industrial institutions that are supposed to take part in projects and to contribute their ability to compete with their global rivals, have already formed for the industrial participation strategy being applied for Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) by our Undersecretariat.
Similarly, the experience and capability of Turkish aviation industry that was gained in A400M Transporter Project, developed culture of working with big players of the sector and prepared foundations for new partnerships in critical activities in the field of not only “joint production” but also design and developing.
As a result, all of these accomplishments are the most important examples that show Turkish defense industry can be competitive, be reliable, speak the same language in technology, be value adding, share both risk and profits, and be a wanted partner in international field because of these.