Türkiye's first locally produced Altay main battle tank, produced by BMC, is set to enter the Turkish army’s inventory in 2025.
Haluk Gorgun, the head of Türkiye’s Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB), announced on Monday that construction activities for the armoured vehicle, as well as engine and power transmission production, are continuing rapidly.
"This year, as promised, we will be delivering our first mass-produced tanks to our heroic army. Our current plans are to open our facility in August and to start and continue the process for the production of all our armored vehicles," he said.
After delivering three ALTAY tanks in 2025, SSB aims to deliver 85 tanks in the T1 configuration: 11 next year, 41 the following year, and 30 the year after. A total of 165 tanks are expected to be delivered in 2028.
Gorgun said that Türkiye is in a position to be appreciated in the world in terms of land vehicles and that more than 4,500 armoured vehicles have been delivered to approximately 50 countries.
“We continue our efforts to increase the rate of localisation and nationalisation," he added.
FNSS to deliver PARS ALPHA
The Turkish defence industry’s new-generation PARS ALPHA 8×8 and 6×6 armoured vehicles will also enter the Turkish Armed Forces’ inventory for the first time.
According to a statement from FNSS, the defence firm and SSB signed the contract for the “Next-Generation Vehicle Project” on Monday.
FNSS will deliver the PARS ALPHA 8x8 Anti-Armor Squad and Armored Recovery variants in the first phase of the contract and the PARS ALPHA 6x6 command post variants with four different mission equipment.
The PARS ALPHA was developed with FNSS’ 35 years of experience and achievements as the fifth generation vehicle in the PARS family of products.
The vehicle offers advanced mobility “through all terrain and any weather conditions (with) its innovative all-wheel-drive, ride-height control and all-axle steering system.”
Its high carrying capacity enables the vehicle to be easily integrated with different systems and the 8x8 configuration is suitable for modern military logistics.
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