TF-X/MMU: Turkey’s future fifth-generation fighter is taking shape

Turkey is making progress in the development of its own fifth-generation fighter aircraft, the TF-X or MMU project, intended to replace the F-16s of its Air Force as of 2030/35.

The Turkish Defense Agency published an image on its social networks showing the degree of preparation progress of the first prototype, which should leave the assembly line to have its roll-out on March 18 this year.

Milli Muharip Uçak… pic.twitter.com/lnBl8cH5HK

— Turkish Defence Agency (@tdefenceagency) January 8, 2023

The first prototype of the Turkish fifth-generation fighter is on the final assembly line, where it was recently fitted with GE F110 engines (produced in Turkey under license), and RAM coating was applied to lower its radar signature.

Design and features

The future National Combat Aircraft (MMU by its Turkish acronym), or also known as TF-X project, will be a 5th generation stealth design aircraft.  It will be a multi-purpose fighter, which although designed with an emphasis on air-to-air missions, will also be able to perform air-to-surface missions.

Unlike the F-16s it is to replace, the future MMU is a twin-engine aircraft, which should be capable of flying in the supercruise regime (low supersonic speeds, without the use of the afterburner system).

The first prototypes will use the same General Electric engines that the TUSAS engine company assembles locally for the F-16 Block 50 fighter aircraft. A new generation fighter engine is being worked on to equip the TF-X to reach its full potential. The intervention of a foreign partner (such as Rolls Royce or General Electric) to provide technical assistance is not ruled out, since engine technology for modern fighter jets is one of the most difficult to master, and very few countries have managed to do so.

The future TF-X will integrate AESA radar, optronic equipment, electronic warfare systems, glass cockpit and armament of Turkish design. The pilot will be assisted by learning algorithms and artificial intelligence. Another significant advance is that parts of its aerostructure will be manufactured by huge electron beam metal 3D printers.

Program schedule

The first flight of the TF-X/MMU is scheduled for late 2025 or early 2026. Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) will manufacture three Block 0 prototypes by 2026 and one Block I prototype by 2029. As in the case of the South Korean KF-21 Boramae program, the first block aircraft would belong to the 4.5 generation, and as relevant technologies, such as new engines, are developed, the Turkish fighter should be able to fit into the 5th generation aircraft, such as the F-35, starting with Block 1.

The Turkish Air Force (Türk Hava Kuvvetleri) is scheduled to receive the first 10 MMU Block 1 fighters between 2030 and 2033. Starting in 2034, TAI should begin serial production of this and more advanced blocks, in order to meet the objective of replacing the F-16s (some of which are being modernized with local technology under the ÖZGÜR program). The future Turkish 5th generation fighter should remain in service until 2070.