Turkey has a fighter jet problem. The decades-old Nato member was barred by the US from taking delivery of its order of more than 100 next-generation F35s that were meant to form the backbone of its air force — a punishment for Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decision to buy a Russian-made air defence system from Vladimir Putin.
Ankara one day hopes to fill the gap in its air force by building its own, Turkish-made fighter. But, with that aircraft far from ready, for now it is reliant on an ageing fleet of F16s.
That explains the recent request submitted by Ankara to Washington for 40 newer F16s, made by Lockheed Martin, as well as modernisation kits to upgrade close to 80 of its existing jets.
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