Turkey this week unveiled a range of ballistic missiles and other advanced ordnance at a national arms fair, as the recent Israel-Iran conflict has pushed regional tensions to the brink. Turkish defense manufacturer Roketsan showcased several new systems, including air-to-air missiles, ballistic missiles, and a hypersonic weapon.
While Ankara has been producing Tayfun-type ballistic missiles for some time, the latest variant, known as the Tayfun Block 4, is notable for its hypersonic capabilities. Weighing 7.2 tonnes and measuring 10 metres in length, the missile is estimated to have a range of 1,000 kilometers.
The unveiling of the Tayfun Block 4 has generated significant media attention, especially as Iran’s use of ballistic and hypersonic missiles against Israel remains under close scrutiny across the region.
Despite Iran’s vulnerable air defenses, it has effectively employed such weapons to strike deep into Israel, including targets in Tel Aviv.
“In today’s modern battlefield, the importance of hypersonic ballistic missiles has become abundantly clear, as recent events have shown,” said Murat Ikinci, general manager of Roketsan, at the International Defence Industry Fair (IDEF) on Tuesday. He added that the new missile would serve as a force multiplier for the Turkish military.
Haluk Gorgun, president of Turkey’s Defence Industry Agency, told reporters that several additional missile and hypersonic weapon projects are under way and will be unveiled to the public in due course.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in June that Turkey would strengthen its deterrence by increasing its stockpile of medium- and long-range missiles. In January, Erdogan announced that Ankara had successfully developed a new missile called Cenk, with a 2,000-kilometre range, intended for use in Turkey’s space programme.
New range of weapons
At the defense fair, Roketsan also introduced the 300 ER air-launched missile, capable of striking targets over 500 kilometers away when deployed from platforms such as fighter jets and drones.
During recent hostilities, Israel is believed to have used similar missiles to strike targets near the Iraqi border from a safe distance.
Meanwhile, the United States has deployed its own bunker buster munition, the GBU-57 A/B Massive Ordnance Penetrator, in strikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities.
Additionally, Roketsan unveiled the development of the Simsek-2 satellite launch vehicle, an advanced two-stage, liquid-fuelled system capable of carrying a 1.5-tonne payload to an orbit above 700 kilometres. This marks a significant milestone in Turkey’s space technology ambitions.
Turkey’s Ministry of Defense R&D division also highlighted its latest generation of penetrating munitions, known as NEB. Nilufer Kuzulu, director of the R&D division, explained that the warheads have remained largely out of public view until now, due to the lengthy processes of completion, certification and qualification, following 12 years of development.
“We conducted firing tests against concrete blocks reinforced with C50-grade concrete and 22-millimetre ribbed steel. The NEB we produced penetrated 7 metres into the target,” Kuzulu said.
“Afterward, the main core continued through additional 1.5-tonne concrete blocks and exited, reaching all the way to the sandpit - an extremely challenging accomplishment.”
Kuzulu added that the bunker-buster bomb was subsequently tested in an air-drop scenario. “In this test, our product advanced about 90 meters through a rocky area and even shattered the far side of the rocks,” he said.