First flight Hürjet

On 25 April 2023, the prototype of the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ) Hürjet made its first flight.

The Hürjet is a single-engine, tandem seat, training and light combat aircraft. The programme was initiated by TUSAŞ in August 2017 using its own financial resources. A mock-up was displayed at the 2018 Farnborough International Airshow.

On 22 July 2018 the Turkish Under-secretariat for Defence Industries announced that the Türk Hava Kuvvetleri (TurAF, Turkish Air Force) had signed an agreement with TAI, giving the programme official status to move development forward.

The first aircraft is powered by a General Electric F404-GE-102 afterburning turbofan. The Hürjet is planned to replace the Northrop F-5 used by the Turkish Stars aerobatic team. The TurAF intends to use the design to replace the Northrop T-38 Talon in the advanced training role and also to supplement the F-16 Fighting Falcon for close air support (CAS).

Photo via Twitter Clash Report (@clashreport) and Tolgaozbekcom (@tolgaozbek_com)