ALTAY tank: 250 units planned, 85 T1 and 165 T2
8 November 2026 — Turkey’s ALTAY main battle tank now has a clearer production plan. According to a statement by the Presidency of Defence Industries (SSB) marking its 41st anniversary, 250 ALTAY tanks are planned for delivery to the Turkish Armed Forces: 85 in the T1 configuration and 165 in T2.
What 85 T1 and 165 T2 means
T1 is the first stage of serial production. T2 is meant to use systems developed under the programme and domestic sub-components. So roughly two thirds of the planned fleet would be the more localised configuration. This is a target split, not a count of delivered tanks.
The domestic BATU powerpack is still a goal
The powerpack, meaning engine and transmission, is the most closely watched part of the programme. Per the SSB statement, the first serial-production tanks use an imported powerpack, with a move to the BATU powerpack developed by BMC Power planned for later production stages. The statement does not say serial deliveries of BATU-powered ALTAYs have started. For now, the switch is a plan rather than a delivered capability.
First deliveries in October 2025
On 28 October 2025 in Kahramankazan, Ankara, a ceremony attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan opened the BMC Ankara Tank and New Generation Armoured Vehicles Production Facility and handed over the first serial-production ALTAY tanks. The statement says development involved 1.5 million engineering hours, 35,000 km of testing and 3,700 live firings.
Plant capacity: eight ALTAY and ten ALTUĞ a month
The production plan announced for the same facility lists eight ALTAY tanks and ten ALTUĞ armoured combat vehicles per month. These are planned capacity figures, not actual monthly output. Even if met, completing a 250-tank plan will take years.
Sources
- Presidency of Defence Industries (SSB) statement, November 2026 (41st anniversary)
