TOMTAŞ, Founded in 1925, Takes Wing Again: ANKA and HÜRJET Work in Kayseri
TOMTAŞ (Tayyare ve Motor Türk Anonim Şirketi — the Turkish Aircraft and Engine Joint Stock Company), established in Kayseri in the early years of the Republic but left unfinished, is back in operation as an industrial plant producing aviation structures. According to a report in the 146th issue of TUSAŞ’s GÖKVATAN magazine, TOMTAŞ Havacılık ve Teknoloji was revived through a partnership between TUSAŞ, ASFAT, TOMTAŞ Yatırım and Erciyes Teknopark.
According to the magazine, critical fuselage and structural parts of the ANKA unmanned aerial vehicle are produced at the Kayseri facilities and integrated into national projects. TOMTAŞ is said not to be limited to parts production, and also takes part in HÜRJET assembly work in Kayseri. The company offers solutions in the machining of structural parts requiring advanced engineering, in production processes and in R&D; TUSAŞ also reports that the facility exports to global aviation companies.
TOMTAŞ executive Ali Ekşi summed up the company’s goal as the vision of “making Kayseri the heart of Turkey in the production of aviation structures.”
The story’s roots go back a century. The contract signed with the German Junkers firm in 1925 provided for the transfer of patents to Turkey and the establishment within two years of a facility capable of producing 250 aircraft a year. The factory, whose materials were carried by sea from Hamburg to İskenderun and from there by rail and ox-cart to Kayseri, opened on 6 October 1926. However, because Junkers failed to transfer the funds on time and because of the financial crisis in Germany, only four of the planned 11 hangars had their skeletons completed; in 1928 the dispute between the parties deepened and the project never reached its targeted production volume.
The magazine did not disclose the new TOMTAŞ’s number of employees, its production capacity or the names of the companies it exports to.
Related coverage
- When and Why Was TUSAŞ Founded? History of Turkish Aerospace
- What is ANKA? Turkey’s Indigenous MALE Drone by TUSAŞ (2026)
- TUSAŞ ANKA Deliveries Explained: How Many in Turkish Service, Which Operators?
Source: TUSAŞ, GÖKVATAN Magazine, Issue 146 (2026/3).
