Near East News

[Aviafora Newsdesk]

Turkish Distributor Orders AW139 and AW189

Istanbul based KAAN Air has placed an order for one AW139 and one AW189 in VIP configuration.


AW139 VIP Interior example

AgustaWestland cite the order as being the first VIP configured 189 ordered in Europe.

http://www.agustawestland.com/news/k...uration-turkey

http://www.kaanair.com/

[Aviafora Newsdesk]

Turkey Confirms Indigenous Helicopter Proposal

The Turkish government is committed to the development of the country's first indigenous helicopter and has allocated an initial sum of $650m towards the project.

The helicopter will be produced by Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc. (TAI), and is being coordinated by the Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry (SSM). Estimates hope that the helicopter could be ready for certification by late 2018. Every component of the helicopter will be produced in Turkey, except the engine, which will come from abroad. But later, a local engine, which will be developed with the help of Tusaş Engine Industries (TEI), will be used. The US company General Electric (GE) is among TEI's partner companies in the production of the engine.

The weight of the helicopter is planned to be 5 tons, and it will be used for civil and military purposes.

The helicopter will be certified by the European Aerospace Safety Agency (EASA). Official talks on the certification have reportedly been started between the SSM and EASA.

The agreement to produce the first Turkish helicopter was signed on June 26, 2013. Sources who wished to remain anonymous have told Today's Zaman that the helicopter's design is planned to be completed by the end of 2016.

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-3489...illion.html

[Aviafora Newsdesk]

More S-92's for Turkish Prime Minister's Office

A recent report shared by the Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry (SSM) has disclosed that the Prime Minister's Office has ordered two new S-92 VIP helicopters to expand its fleet, which already includes three helicopters, media outlets reported on Tuesday.


The Turkish Prime Minister's Office (who already operated three Sikorsky S-92's) are pleased with the type and are planning to order two additional aircraft

According to the Cumhuriyet daily, the Prime Minister's Office already has three S-92 VIP helicopters, all of which were purchased from US aircraft manufacturer Sikorsky after 2003, when Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan came to power. The S-92 can fly at a speed of 300 kilometers per hour and has a capacity of eight passengers. The aircraft has a sofa, desk, bathroom and kitchen. It can fly a maximum of 1,000 kilometers without refueling. The first helicopter, dubbed “OBA,” was purchased in 2007, while two others were purchased in 2013 for around $58 million. With the newly ordered helicopters, the total number of helicopters in the Prime Ministry's fleet will increase to five.

Apart from helicopters, the Prime Minister's Office has also purchased several planes in the last 11 years. The ministry purchased an Airbus A319, registration “TC-ANA,” in 2005. As the plane's range and passenger capacity made it inappropriate for long journeys, the Prime Minister's Office later ordered a new Airbus A330 in 2010. However, this plane has still not been delivered.

Cumhuriyet also claimed that the Prime Ministry is constructing an airplane hangar at Ankara Esenboğa Airport to accommodate the helicopters and planes of its air fleet.

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-3476...air-fleet.html