Turkish defense firm, mobile operators to develop domestic base station antenna

ANKARA

Turkey’s state-run defense company ASELSAN and mobile operators Turkcell, Türk Telekom and Vodafone have cooperated to develop a base station antenna to be used for the 4.5G network.

Transport Minister Ahmet Arslan attended the signature ceremony on Jan. 26 on the sidelines of the “5G and Beyond Technologies Conference” about the use of the domestic base station antenna. 

ASELSAN General Manager Faik Eken said in a statement that their company aims to leave a mark on mobile communication networks with its products. “Our base station is undergoing hundreds of tests in operator labs. These efforts are coming to an end and they will be set up on live network fields soon,” he said. 

Kaan Terzioğlu, Turkcell’s CEO, said they were “working non-stop to do its share properly to make Turkey a leading country in development and production of next generation communication technologies.” 

While Türk Telekom CEO Paul Doany said their company wanted to test the domestic base station antenna on its network as soon as possible. 

Colman Deegan, CEO of Vodafone Turkey, said the company is supporting the state’s efforts aimed at creating a communication sector with a larger domestic production rate and its steps to develop a locally-produced system.