Aviation Week & Space Technology - January 15, 2015

ing to happen, and waited until the last
minute before they started paying at-
tention, and they are in the panic stage.
They have to reclassify and re-mark
and rethink. But the companies that
have gone through all of that, that are
in the acceptance stage—particularly

with respect to trade by and among

the close allies—are finding really

dramatic efficiencies. To the extent

it’s with the rest of the world, it’s a

little bit better,” Wolf continued. “And

to the extent their intent is trading by

or with countries of concern, it is just

as illegal today as it was yesterday, and

they’re getting no assistance and that,

of course, is deliberate. So it just de-

pends on where a company is in those

fi ve stages of acceptance.”

The next Commerce webinar on ex-

port reform for industry is Jan. 29. c

man Traders), into the late 2020s, to de-
velop its carrier-aviation expertise, with
the ultimate goal being a new carrier,
probably with Sea Gripens.
Prosub is being carried out by a
joint venture between Odebrecht and
France’s DCNS, which will fi rst build
four Scorpene-class submarines with
air-independent propulsion systems at
a purpose-built base and shipyard at
Itaguai. This is planned to be followed
by Brazil’s fi rst nuclear-powered sub-

marine. Much bigger than the Scor-

pene, the 5,600-ton vessel will combine

Scorpene know-how with a propulsion

system developed under a government-

controlled nuclear program.

In this case, the need for autonomy

is absolute because no nation will ex-

port nuclear propulsion technology.

Brazil’s government, via a navy re-

search center in Sao Paulo, has spon-

sored a long-running nuclear program

that has developed a complete fuel

cycle, from mining to disposal. Work

is underway on an experimental land-

based system comprising a 48- mega-

watt pressurized-water reactor and

generator. This development is driven

by perceived strategic need: A 2009

briefi ng by Nelson Jobim, then the na-

tion’s defense minister, refers exten-

sively to the 1982 Falklands war and

the degree to which a single British

nuclear submarine was able to para-

lyze Argentina’s navy. c

AviationWeek.com/awst AVIATION WEEK & SPACE TECHNOLOGY/JANUARY 15-FEBRUARY 1, 2015 45

Tony Osborne London

Baby Steps

Turkey is maturing its products with the goal of

becoming a major defense exporter

T

urkey’s grand ambitions see it
becoming one of the world’s big-
gest exporters by 2023, and the
country hopes that its defense sector
will help it achieve that goal.
After decades of technology sharing
and of sets—some of which continue
today—Turkey is in the comfortable
position of having a well-developed
defense industry with indigenous
products that are gaining signifi cant
traction in the market thanks to heavy
government support and proactive
promotional campaigns and activities.
But 2014 was not as strong a year
as of cials perhaps would have liked.
According to fi gures released by Tur-
key’s Exporters Council, defense ex-
ports bought in $1.2 billion dollars in
the first nine months of the year, up
from the corresponding period of 2013,
but slightly below Turkish ambitions of
achieving $1.8-2 billion of sales.
However, the country’s Undersecre-
tariat for Defense Industries (SSM) is
conservative about its approach to ex-
ports and has stated that the $2 billion
benchmark could be reached in 2016,
and that defense equipment could

represent as much as 5% of Turkish

exports in a decade.

Turkey has been working hard to build

international bridges in recent years.

Unable to fully benefi t from trade links

generated by its neighbors in the Euro-

pean Union, Turkey has been focusing

its attentions on Central Asia, Africa,

the Middle East and Latin America. In

the Middle East, Turkey represents a

friendly face, a supplier that is not limited

by the tough U.S. International Traf c in

Arms Regulations (ITAR). Nor is it trad-

ing with Israel, despite the close ties the

two countries once had. Of course, these

soured when Israeli Special Forces at-

tacked a Turkish aid fl otilla in the Medi-

terranean in 2010, and the relationship

has so far failed to recover; both Turkey

and Israel of cially severed defense ties

as a result.

Unlike Europe, Turkey was not badly

affected by the economic downturn

and has been able to keep spending,

making it an attractive target for

investment by Western companies

looking to offer their wares beyond

Europe. In fact, one of the main tenets

of Turkish success has been developing

The TAI Hurkus trainer is the fi rst

indigenous aircraft to emerge from

Turkey since the 1930s, coming as a

direct result of TAI’s work on F-16s

during the 1980s and 1990s.

TURKISH AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES