Turkey’s Domestic Defense Systems Delivered Since 2023: What the Official Data Shows

The defining feature of the post-2023 period is that domestic systems developed in earlier years moved into serial production and operational inventory. According to the SSB’s 2024 Activity Report, 47 air-defense, radar and electronic-warfare systems were delivered to the Turkish Armed Forces during the year; the sixth, seventh and eighth MILGEM-program ships were launched, and the first two ALTAY main battle tanks were handed over to the army.

Key delivery and entry-into-service events

This context matters: the same platforms simultaneously enter the domestic inventory and generate export revenue. Unmanned aerial vehicle exports alone were reported at more than 770 platforms to over 50 countries in 2024. Turkey’s combined export figures include more than 4,500 land vehicles to 40 countries, corvettes to three countries, roughly 140 naval platforms, and munitions/missiles to 42 countries — showing that domestic deliveries and export deliveries are fed by the same production lines.

Delivery vs. first flight vs. serial production

Three concepts need to be kept separate. A first flight or first launch is a prototype-stage milestone and does not mean the platform has entered service. The start of serial production shows the design has matured and a production line exists. Entry into service or delivery means a serial-built platform has been handed to an operational user and begun duty. In the post-2023 period these three stages fell in different years for different platforms, so each system’s status must be assessed individually.

In the air domain, 2023-2025 saw first flights and first deliveries overlap. The key distinction is that first flight (test) and entry into service (delivery) fall on different dates for most platforms.

GOKBEY stands out as the only domestic helicopter to actually enter service after 2023: it was delivered to the Gendarmerie General Command on 29 October 2024. TUSAS has stated a medium-term goal of over 350 GOKBEY/ATAK/ATAK-2 rotary-wing platforms and close to 500 KAAN/HURJET/HURKUS aircraft — targets, not deliveries.

Bayraktar TB2 and AKINCI continued to anchor both domestic use and exports. TB2 is reported in the inventory of 34 countries and AKINCI in 10; after a November 2024 deal with Croatia, TB2 entered service with six NATO allies and four EU members, and surpassed one million flight hours. TB3 conducted takeoff and landing trials aboard TCG Anadolu in 2024, and KIZILELMA moved into serial production according to the manufacturer, with first deliveries to the Turkish Armed Forces expected in 2025-2026.

The most important land-domain output of the period is the serial production and service entry of the ALTAY main battle tank, following a long development process.

ALTAY timeline

The first batch of T1 tanks is expected to use a South Korean-sourced engine and transmission until domestic powerpack integration is complete. A follow-on plan calls for 165 ALTAY-T2 tanks; this is a production plan, not delivered inventory.

ALTAY’s service entry also exposed the technical limits of powerpack dependency: while the hull, turret, fire-control system and armor are largely domestic, the powerpack — engine and transmission — remains a separate, still-maturing program (BATU). Meanwhile ROKETSAN’s KARA ATMACA land-attack cruise missile, the TAYFUN ballistic missile and the air-to-surface supersonic missile broadened the reach of land forces as part of official delivery announcements, several of which are designed for multi-domain integration across land, sea and air platforms.

In the naval domain, the symbol of the period is the frigate TCG Istanbul (F-515). The fifth ship of the MILGEM program and lead ship of the Istif class, TCG Istanbul entered service with the Turkish Naval Forces on 19 January 2024, with a domestic content ratio of approximately 80%.

In missiles and air defense, ROKETSAN delivered a range of domestic systems to the Turkish Armed Forces during this period: the SIPER Block 1 long-range regional air and missile defense system, HISAR-A and HISAR-O air-defense missiles, the SUNGUR air-defense system, the ATMACA anti-ship missile, the KARA ATMACA, CAKIR and SOM cruise missiles, and the TAYFUN ballistic missile.

Air-defense / missile family (in service)

TCG Istanbul’s roughly 80% domestic-content ratio shows how far combat-management systems, radar, electronic warfare and weapons have been localized. ROKETSAN’s ATMACA anti-ship missile and the ASELSAN-built GOKDENIZ close-in weapon system and radar families form the core weapon-sensor layer of the domestic frigates and corvettes.