The Turkish Minister of Defense, Yaşar Güler, officially announced on November 27, 2024, the intention to reduce the previously announced program for the modernization of existing F-16s and the purchase of new ones, for which the United States granted approval at the beginning of 2024, with an initial cost estimated at a staggering $23 billion.
The Turkish defense ministry has decided to carry out the modernization of these aircraft using its own capabilities, retaining only the provision for purchasing new F-16s from the U.S., which will result in a resource saving of $16 billion. This information was reported by the Scramble.nl portal.
It is noted that the initial program included the acquisition of 32 new F-16C Block 70 aircraft and eight F-16D Block 70 from the U.S., as well as upgrade kits for 79 F-16C/D aircraft currently in service with the Turkish Air Force.
At the same time, the Turkish military leadership has decided that while new F-16s will still be purchased from the U.S., the modernization of operational aircraft will be carried out at the facilities of the national aerospace company Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAS). This is expected to help reduce costs to $7 billion instead of the initial figure of $23 billion.
It turns out that the Turkish leadership took a full 10 months to deliberate on this issue, as the U.S. approval for the program was granted back in late January 2024. However, by July of this year, there were initial signals that the Turks were likely not going to "pour" $23 billion into the F-16s, which is entirely logical.
It is highly likely that the Turkish military leadership has decided to reallocate resources towards programs it considers more prioritized.
For instance, Turkey is once again raising the issue with the U.S. about returning to the F-35 program, from which official Ankara was removed in 2019. Additionally, after years of negotiations, Turkey has come closer to acquiring 40 Eurofighter jets, which could cost up to $10 billion.
Previously, Defense Express reported that the U.S. allegedly wants to sell its used F-16 MLU to Colombia, which means fewer aircraft for Ukraine and again about Gripen.