Turkish defense news platform Ulusavunma reported that the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) of Türkiye has placed an official order for the sixth prototype of the KAAN fifth-generation fighter jet. This marks a key milestone in Türkiye’s push to field a domestically developed next-gen combat aircraft, reinforcing its ambition to become self-reliant in advanced aerospace technology. Spearheaded by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), KAAN stands as Türkiye’s first fully indigenous fighter jet, signaling a bold step forward in national defense innovation.
The development of KAAN—originally designated as the TF-X program—was launched in 2016 to support Türkiye’s strategic goal of achieving independence in military aviation. Under SSB’s guidance, TAI led the effort with early focus areas including conceptual design, computational fluid dynamics analysis, and digital performance modeling. The aircraft’s full-scale prototype was first revealed at the 2019 Paris Air Show, marking a defining moment in Türkiye’s emergence as a next-generation fighter jet developer on the global stage.
