Two Eurofighter Typhoon jets belonging to the U.K.’s Royal Air Force landed at Mürted Air Base in Ankara, Türkiye’s capital for inspection by Turkish officials, media reports said Wednesday.
Defense Minister Yaşar Güler announced on Dec. 14 that two Eurofighter jets, which recently participated in a drill in Qatar, would arrive in Ankara to allow Turkish authorities to inspect the aircraft.
Güler also emphasized that discussions regarding Ankara’s potential purchase of the Eurofighter jets were progressing positively.
Eurofighter Typhoon warplanes are a joint production of the U.K., Germany, Italy, and Spain. Late last year, Ankara said it was in talks with the Eurofighter consortium to acquire 40 Typhoons.
“The planes that arrived for inspection by our Air Force were welcomed by the U.K. Minister of State for Defence Procurement and Industry, Maria Eagle, as well as Air Force Commander General Ziya Cemal Kadıoğlu, Deputy Minister Şuay Alpay and our military personnel on duty,” the post shared by National Defense Ministry on X, said.
The ministry confirmed that two jets arrived in Ankara on a return from an exercise held in Qatar.
While Ankara has expressed interest in acquiring the warplanes, the process has been complicated by Germany’s objections, as approval from all producing nations is required for the sale.
The procurement of Eurofighter jets, however, appears to have gained further momentum as Germany has mandated its sales authority to work on the sale of jets after initially being opposed to the move, a Defense Ministry source said last month.
Türkiye’s interest in Eurofighters came after a prolonged process over its request to buy F-16 warplanes from the U.S.
