Hürjet performs takeoff test

ANKARA

Türkiye’s light attack aircraft Hürjet has successfully passed its maiden flight test.

An F-16 fighting falcon jet accompanied Hürjet during its first flight at Mürted Airfield Command, an air base of the Turkish Air Force in the capital Ankara’s northwest, on April 25.

The aircraft passed its first engine start test in early February.

Developed by the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ), Hürjet will be able to use nine different kinds of ammunition developed domestically, according to defense officials.

Among them are highly maneuverable air-to-air Gökdoğan and Bozdoğan missiles, a SOM cruise missile, miniature bombs, concrete-piercing Sarb-83, precision guidance kit (HGK-3), winged guidance kits KGK-83 and KGK-82 and high precision guidance kit Teber developed by Türkiye’s rocket producer Roketsan.

The single-engine Hürjet, which will harbor a tandem cockpit, is also expected to play a crucial role in modern warplane training.

The aircraft will be able to perform roles such as combat readiness transition training, air patrol (armed and unarmed), and aerobatic demonstration. It will also be able to take off from Türkiye’s largest warship TCG Anadolu, which can carry helicopters, drones, land vehicles and personnel.

It measures around 14 meters long, with a wingspan of 9.5 meters, can reach a speed of Mach 1.4, and can fly at a maximum height of 45,000 feet.

The advanced jet’s maximum altitude is set at 45,000 feet (14 kilometers), along with its 3,000-kilogram (6,600-pound) payload.

The project was initiated to be included in the inventory instead of the T-38 aircraft used within the scope of Jet Evolvement Training and the F-5 aircraft used in the Acro team flights, while it is aimed to produce two Hürjets every month after the project’s certification activities are completed by the end of 2025.