How much has the TAF inventory been modernized?

Turkey and Greece have lived on the same land for many years, and now they are in an endless tension despite being two neighboring countries with both land and sea borders. However, the statement about the TAF inventory made by the Greek side made a big impact in our country. So is there any truth to it?

Why did Greece and Turkey come to the brink of conflict?

There are two major disagreements between Greece and Turkey at the moment. First of all, in the words of Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, “Greece claims everything by acting like a spoiled child of Europe”. As a concrete example of this, Turkey’s demand to stop natural gas exploration activities within the borders of Mavi Vatan can be shown.

Because Greece, by demanding what no other country in the world has done, wants the status of even a tiny island 200 kilometers away from it to be considered as the mainland and to increase its territorial waters and airspace. Of course, because of these islands that surround our country, some of which we can even reach by swimming, we cannot float a ship in the Aegean if we accept the wishes of Greece.

The second disagreement is experienced on the islands left to Greece with the Lausanne and Paris agreements. Because, pursuant to Article 13 of Lausanne, only the police and gendarmerie forces can be found here. In other words, it is forbidden to establish military naval bases and fortifications. However, according to Turkey’s claim, this rule was violated and all of them were armed. Therefore, the legitimacy of these islands was also debatable.

Thereupon, the state administrators in Greece started a serious propaganda against Turkey. In fact, there were news in the local media in our country that this could turn into conflict and even war. In addition, Greece, in response to the EFES 2022 exercise, said something condescending and condescending about the TAF inventory. So, do these reflect reality?

Has the TAF inventory been modernized? Is it enough for war?

land forces

There are thousands, even tens of thousands of vehicles in the TAF inventory. It is true that some of them are old and some of them have been modernized and their lifespan has been extended. Of course, there are those who need to be replaced as soon as possible and those who have reached the end of their lives. But besides this, there are hundreds of new projects and almost finished work.

For example, Greece used the M48 tanks used by Turkey as propaganda material in the EFES 2022 exercise. It is true that these US-made tanks are almost 70 years old and have reached the end of their life. We can even say the same thing for a new generation of them, the US-made M60s. Because even the USA switched to M1 Abrams in the 90s, sold these tanks to countries such as Turkey, Israel and Egypt.

Although there are close to 2000 of these tanks in the TAF inventory, there are also tanks such as the relatively newer and more advanced Leopard 1 and the Leopard 1T, which was modernized with the contribution of ASELSAN in the 2000s. There are even a number of Leopard 2 models around 350.

But to be crooked and to speak correctly, the Altay tank project, which has been worked on for many years but has been constantly postponed because the tried-and-tested power transmission elements are not enough, needs to go into mass production as soon as possible. No statement was made about the condition of the engines taken from South Korea for tests in the past months. However, the rapid completion of the domestic engine project to be used in the future seems essential for now.

Of course, the Land Forces don’t just have tanks. For example, hundreds of howitzers such as the T-155 Storm and the T-155 are at the forefront of possible conflicts. In addition, 4×4 such as Poyraz, Tulpar, ZMA-15, ZPTP, Amazon, Arma, Cobra, Ejder Yalçın, Ejder Kunter, Ilgaz, Kaya, Khan, Hızır, Kirpi, Pars, Pusat, Vuran, Ural, Yörük, Efe and Derman. There are more than ten thousand vehicles, 6×6 and 8×8, armored, wheeled or tracked, artillery, machine-gun or missile-deployed. Moreover, many of these are highly modernized or new products.

naval forces

In the Naval Forces, mainly 4 Yavuz Class Frigates, 4 Barbaros Class Frigates, 8 Gabya Class Frigates, 6 Burak class corvettes, 4 ADA class corvettes, 4 Gür class submarines, 4 Ay class submarines, 4 Preveze class There are submarines, 4 Doğan class fast boats, 4 Rüzgar class gunboats, 2 Yıldız class gunboats, 9 sword class gunboats, 11 minesweepers, 16 patrol ships, and 27 large landing craft.

Of course, it should be noted that these are only an important part of the inventory. But a peninsula like Turkey surrounded by seas on 3 sides is definitely not enough for the country. For this reason, the MİLGEM project was initiated. Many ships were built here for Turkey and friendly countries. Now, 10 ships, 5 of which are submarines, are under construction. Moreover, let’s point out that these ships we built are of 21st century quality and are better than both their competitors and their predecessors.

In addition, the short-runway amphibious ship has been launched and will be included in the inventory this year. The TF-2000 destroyer project continues. But wars are not won with ships alone. Instead of the USA’s Harpoon missile, Atmaca, which was developed for our needs, was included in the inventory. In addition, many projects continue, such as the Çakır missile, which has recently entered the inventory.

Moreover, we haven’t even started talking about armed unmanned sea vehicles such as ULAQ, SALVO and SANCAR. Thanks to these SİDAs produced by three different companies, close contact type missions can be carried out without risking the coast guard and human life.

However, let’s say that the number of warships in our inventory is not enough for Turkey and is starting to get old, so the MİLGEM project has a vital importance here.

Air forces

The Air Force may possibly be the most strategic and important element an army can have. Because when we dominate the airspace, it is possible to hunt enemy tanks one by one with SİHAs such as Anka and TB2 without the need for jets.

Turkey, on the other hand, has advanced enough to enter the top 3 in the world in the last 5 years in the development of UAVs, SİHAs and domestic satellites. Moreover, we are not talking about such simple systems. We have seen many times that the SİHAs tested in Syria, Libya, Azerbaijan and Ukraine have changed the course of the war.

Of course, as we mentioned, it is very important to establish airspace dominance here. Since our air defense systems are not sufficient, we provide these partially with jets. We have the most F-16s. In fact, it is known that the number exceeded 300. But although we are constantly modernizing, some of them are relatively old. In fact, thanks to TAI, we brought them all up to the Block 50+ standard.

In addition, there are many cargo and refueling aircraft. There are also strategic Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft of the AWACS type. But there are also F4 ​​and F4E type aircraft, the number of which has reached 300 (some of which has been retired).

The lifespan of F-16s is being extended until 2040 with the work done. However, there is a shortage of F-35 type 5th generation aircraft. Here, Turkey’s domestic projects come into play. At the moment, we see that 3 different programs are focused on.

The first of these, Hürkuş, is currently in mass production. In addition, an armed close air support aircraft named Hürkuş-C is of great importance. But these are not in the jet class. Therefore, all eyes are on Hürjet, which will make its maiden flight on March 18, 2023. Right behind it is the MMU, which we positioned as a class between the F-35 and F-22.

In addition, work continues on ATAK 2, an improved version of the ATAK helicopter, which is among the best in its class. Here, the domestic engine produced by TEI, which will be used in Gökbey for the first time, will be featured. In addition, work continues on different versions of Gökbey. In other words, domestic steps are being taken not only in aircraft but also in helicopters.

To summarize in general, we will reach the desired level between 2027 and 2030 with the domestic projects developed by Turkey on aircraft, helicopters, tanks, ships and air defense systems. However, at the moment, we see that the Greek side has some justification, albeit partial, in the words directed to the Turkish side, regardless of its own army.

However, it is stated that the TAF has enough power to support 3 fronts, as Syria, Greece and Cyprus, and its plans are in this direction. In other words, weapons and ammunition logistics planning has been made so that the TSK can cope with this.

What do you think about this subject? Don’t forget to share your views with us in the comments!