Turkey may buy Russian MI-28 attack choppers to bridge gap

[JS50557]

Turkey plans to buy 32 Russian MI 28 attack helicopters as a stop gap measure in its fight against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has intensified its attacks in the past year, Turkish defense industry sources have said.

"Until the attack helicopters that Turkey will produce in cooperation with AgustaWestland over the next five years begin to enter service, Turkey plans to buy Russian attack helicopters to bridge the gap," said the same sources.

Turkey has around seven Cobra Whiskey AH 1 attack helicopters out of around 12 in its military inventory, and the shortage in attack helicopters means that it is unable to fight effectively against the PKK, said a retired Turkish military source. However, sources from the Turkish Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry (SSM) were not immediately available to confirm the reports.

Nevertheless, well-informed sources said the SSM has been conducting secret negotiations with a Russian company, Rosoboronexport, for the purchase of 32 attack helicopters at a cost of about $1 billion.

Earlier this year, Turkey asked the US to sell it Cobra helicopters to meet its urgent requirements. But due to the unavailability of the US-made Bell Cobras, Washington suggested Turkey buy Boeing-made Apache helicopters instead.

"Ankara turned down the US's Apache proposal out of a fear that it may kill its attack helicopter deal with the Italian AgustaWestland," said the Turkish defense industry sources.

Though Ankara signed a deal worth around $3.5 billion with AgustaWestland for attack helicopters in June this year, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) have refused AgustaWestland's offer of selling off-the-shelf A129 Mangusta attack helicopters as an interim solution.

TSK turned down the Italian offer on the grounds that the existing A129 helicopters would not have met its urgent requirements.

Turkey's attack helicopter project with Italy went into effect in late June this year, but it was overshadowed by speculation that those helicopters would be delivered late, in addition to several alleged technical shortcomings in meeting the Turkish requirements.

The project envisages the joint production of 50 helicopters with an option of another 41 at the facilities of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), the main contractor in the project, using the maximum amount of local resources. The helicopters to be produced at TAI are to be named T129, which will be based on the Italian A129, but configured to meet Turkish requirements.

The first T129 helicopter is scheduled to be delivered to the Turkish Land Forces Command on June 24, 2013. The remaining 49 helicopters are planned to be delivered within four-and-a-half years after that date.

Turkish plans to buy attack helicopters to meet what the TSK has commonly described as "urgent needs" date back to the early 1990s, when the current SSM undersecretary, Murad Bayar, was a junior project officer.

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detay ... &bolum=100" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;