In search of new avenues for Spanish-Turkish cooperation
Spanish industry representation at SAHA
The Turkish Hürjet jet is set to capture the attention of the more than 100 official delegations and 100,000 professionals who have confirmed their attendance at the SAHA Expo defence and aerospace exhibition in Istanbul (Turkey), which opens on Tuesday, 5 May, and will remain open for five days, until 9 May.
The man set to be the star of the fifth edition of SAHA is Mehmet Demiroglu, the chief executive of Hürjet’s manufacturer, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), the host nation’s leading aerospace company. Why is this senior executive set to receive so many congratulations and accolades?
At 56, Demiroglu is the man who has successfully secured the first export contract for a Turkish military supersonic aircraft, destined for the Spanish Air Force. At the helm of TAI since June 2024, Mehmet Demiroglu has confirmed that of the 30 Hürjet units purchased by Spain for €2.6 billion, “the first 21 aircraft will arrive on Spanish soil in the second half of 2028 and the last ones will land in 2031”.
More than thirty Turkish companies attended FEINDEF 2025, including TAI, which designs, develops and manufactures aircraft, helicopters, drones and communications satellites – PHOTO/JPons
The head of TAI has emphasised that his main objective is “to successfully execute the Hürjet programme for Spain”. He will present this to ministers, air force chiefs and senior officials from the hundreds of official delegations from different countries who will visit TAI’s large stand at SAHA, and who, in closed-door meetings, will seek details of Spanish-Turkish cooperation.
With Airbus as the prime contractor for the Spanish adaptation of the Turkish trainer, leading the contribution of 14 Spanish companies – including Aertec, GMV, Grupo Oesia, Indra, ITP, Orbital and Sener – Mehmet Demiroglu has emphasised that TAI aims to “increase cooperation with Spain and collaboration with the European industrial sector, with a view to securing future sales, whether for the Spanish Air Force, other NATO nations or third countries, including those in Latin America”.
It should be noted that with a workforce of 16,000, TAI designs, develops and manufactures training and combat aircraft, utility and attack helicopters, as well as combat, surveillance and reconnaissance drones. It is also the leading national manufacturer of communications satellites and contributes to the development of observation platforms. Furthermore, it manufactures aerostructures, for example, for Airbus helicopters and for the A400M transport aircraft, a programme in which the Turkish government and industry are involved, and of which the Turkish Air Force has ten aircraft.
Mehmet Demiroglu has confirmed that the first batch of Hürjets will arrive in Spain in the second half of 2028, with the final batch arriving in 2031 – PHOTO/TAI
In search of new avenues for Spanish-Turkish cooperation
Indeed, in light of the international geopolitical situation caused by the US attack on Iran and the rift that has emerged among NATO nations, the potential for growth in defence industrial relations between Spain and Turkey is increasing.
This has been recognised by both Mehmet Demiroglu and Professor Haluk Görgün, president since June 2023 of the Turkish Defence Industry Agency (SSB), the organisation established in November 1985 by the Ankara government to manage and promote the national defence industry and prioritise technology transfers through the procurement of systems and services from companies in third countries.
Both senior executives have travelled to Spain to attend the signing ceremony on 28 April at the Airbus factory in Getafe (Madrid) of what the Ministry of Defence refers to as the “development of the new integrated combat training system”, that is, the purchase of the Hürjet and the introduction of sovereign technologies.
The Director-General for Strategy and Innovation in the Defence Industry, Air Force Lieutenant General Miguel Ivorra, and the President of Airbus Spain, Francisco Javier Sánchez Segura, two key figures behind Spain’s industrial plan for the Saeta II – PHOTO/JPons
In this regard, for Marta Nogueira, head of business in Spain at Airbus Defence and Space, the Spanish adaptation of the Hürjet achieves “three strategic milestones: ensuring technology transfers in key areas, securing a significant industrial return, and providing the programme with the necessary sovereignty to manage the sustainment and any future evolution of the system”.
The two Turkish executives also met with senior figures from the Spanish defence and aerospace industry —Indra, Navantia, the strategic consultancy QPAS and others—with the aim of identifying new avenues for bilateral cooperation, continuing the joint promotion of the Hürjet as an advanced trainer, in its light attack configuration and in that of the future Turkish fifth-generation air superiority fighter Kaan, also currently under development.
One area of activity in which the governments of Madrid and Ankara have not yet delved deeply is the space sector. Turkey has its own space agency (TUA) and a single state-owned satellite communications operator called Turksat, which has six satellites in orbit and in service. Its executive director, Ahmet Hamdi Atalay, confirmed in late April that the design phase of the new Turksat 7A platform has now been completed, with TAI as its prime contractor.
The president of the Turkish Defence Industry Agency, Professor Haluk Görgün, has met with senior executives from the Spanish defence industry at his country’s embassy in Madrid – PHOTO/SSB Haluk Görgün on X
Spanish industry representation at SAHA
Pending the emergence of other avenues for bilateral engagement, an official delegation from the Ministry of Defence will attend SAHA to directly identify new opportunities for strengthening Spanish-Turkish relations. It will be led by the Director General of Defence Industry Strategy and Innovation (DIGEID), Air Lieutenant General Miguel Ivorra, accompanied by the Director of the Foreign Trade Support Office (OFICAEX), Air General Pedro Belmonte.
The Spanish presence at the exhibition, which opens on 5 May, is limited to six companies, according to the organisers. One of these is Alias Robotics, which will be in the NATO pavilion alongside a select and small group of companies that form part of DIANA, the Atlantic Alliance’s defence innovation accelerator.
President Erdogan is driving forward the development of the Kaan, Turkey’s future fifth-generation air superiority fighter – PHOTO/Presidency of Turkey
Alias Robotics is a company specialising in “applying and running artificial intelligence in the most demanding cyber-defence and cybersecurity software programmes for ministries, official institutions and companies in the sector”, says its CEO, Endika Gil. But that is not all. Endika Gil is keen to emphasise that “our technology is 100% Spanish and sovereign, and is recognised within the NATO environment”.
Of the other five companies showcasing their latest innovations at SAHA, one is Kreios Space, focused on the development of small, ultra-high-resolution observation satellites, broadband connectivity for very low Earth orbit – around 200 kilometres in altitude – and equipped with electric propulsion; Another is EGA Master, a manufacturer of high-precision hand tools for the aerospace, defence and other industries; and Emzer, EuroSMC and Inelmatic Electronics Group, all three of which are dedicated to the design and manufacture of electronic devices and products for high-tech sectors.
Built in Istanbul using Spanish technology, the amphibious assault ship Anadolu was based on the design of the Spanish Navy’s Juan Carlos I – PHOTO/ Presidency of Turkey
Unlike in previous years, Navantia will not have its own stand, although “its executives will be attending the exhibition”, the company states. Navantia’s commercial director for Europe and Turkey, Alfonso Valea, has just signed a framework agreement with the managing director of Turkish Shipyards, Emre Dinçer, for the three-year maintenance of the amphibious assault ship Anadolu, built in Istanbul based on the design of the Spanish Navy’s LHD Juan Carlos I and incorporating Spanish technology transfer.
The Spanish delegation, led by Lieutenant General Ivorra, has scheduled high-level meetings during its stay in Istanbul and at SAHA, which is one of Turkey’s two major biennial showcases for the aerospace and defence industry; in 2026, it has managed to attract around 1,500 exhibitors, mainly from the United States, Europe and China. SAHA has been held in even-numbered years since 2018, whilst the International Defence Industry Fair (IDEF) takes place in odd-numbered years. The next edition of IDEF, the 18th, is scheduled for the first week of May 2027.
The SAHA Expo defence and aerospace exhibition in Istanbul opens on Tuesday, 5 May, and will run until 9 May – PHOTO/SAHA Expo-Savunma Sanavi
The final destination of the Spanish-built Hürjets is the 23rd Wing of the Fighter and Attack School, where they will replace the long-serving CASA/Northrop F-5s. The training centre is located at Talavera la Real Air Base, 15 kilometres from Badajoz, where selected pilots receive training to carry out air-to-air and air-to-ground combat missions.
In Spain, the Hürjet has been christened with the nickname Saeta II, paying homage to the first Spanish-built jet, the Hispano Aviación HA-200 Saeta, in the design of which the renowned German engineer Willy Messerschmitt played a part. The Saeta’s maiden flights date back to the mid-1950s; it remained in service in various versions until 1981, with over 200 units produced, including 90 under licence in Egypt.