Turkey: The Turks also want to get Rafale after they see that the US is drastically delaying the sale of F-16 Vipers to Turkey.
The Turks were left without new-generation fighters, since after Turkey’s expulsion from the American F-35 program, now the US is drastically delaying the purchase of the new F-16 Vipers requested by Ankara.
The Turks have started to press in their turn, with a series of Turkish publications by the country’s major media reporting that Turkey has begun to see other options, apart from the American fighters.
“If the sale (including the American Viper) is blocked, Turkey has different options. These include British and French aircraft, as well as Russian-made SU-57 fighter jets,” writes the Turkish Milliyet.
It is not the first time that fighters from outside the US enter the conversation about the Turkish Air Force.
Non-NATO combat aircraft (such as SU-57 or Su-35) is a self-destructive scenario for Turkey, since all its infrastructure is NATO.
The high cost of such a move makes this decision almost impossible.
Turkey has tried to put French and British fighters in the frame in the past.
Recall that Turkey has signed a bilateral defense agreement with Qatar to station 36 Rafale and Mirage fighter planes in the country.
Qatar’s French fighter jets will be fully equipped and will carry out “joint operations against common enemies” if necessary.
At the same time, Turkey is also interested in British Eurofighters, which seem a more compatible option.
Geostratigika.gr estimates that Turkey will follow the path of Egypt and order, if necessary, a new generation Eurofighter from Italy.
