Turkey will export 48 KAAN fighter jets to Indonesia, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Wednesday.
“As part of the agreement signed with our friendly and brotherly country, Indonesia, 48 Kaan (fighter jets) will be produced in Turkey and exported to Indonesia,” Erdogan wrote on X.
The fifth-generation fighter jet Kaan is produced by state-run Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI).
“Indonesia’s local capabilities will also be utilised in the production of Kaan” jets, added the Turkish head of state without providing further details on the production arrangements.
The contract, valued at $ 10 billion, includes the production and delivery of the Kaan fighter jets to Indonesia over a ten-year period, according to Turkish media. The deal also includes a technology transfer to Indonesia, according to Turkish broadcaster TRT Haber.
Earlier, Indonesia had expressed keen interest in participating in the development of the KAAN, a fifth-generation stealth fighter jet spearheaded by Turkish Aerospace Industries.
This announcement, made by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto during a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara on April 10, 2025, marks a significant step in Indonesia’s quest for cutting-edge jets.
The KAAN is designed to replace Turkey’s aging F-16 fleet and compete with global heavyweights like the U.S. F-35 and Russia’s Su-57.
With its twin-engine design, stealth features, advanced avionics, and manned-unmanned teaming capabilities, the KAAN promises to deliver cutting-edge performance. Its maiden flight in February 2024 and subsequent tests have showcased its potential, with plans for initial production by 2028.
President Subianto’s announcement also highlighted interest in collaborating on Turkish submarine projects, signaling a comprehensive defense partnership. This move comes amid growing bilateral ties, with recent agreements on trade, culture, and disaster management.
KAAN Wins Over J-10C, Rafale?
Earlier, Chinese media, SCMP, said that Indonesia’s bet on Rafale jets is facing scrutiny after Pakistan claimed to have shot down multiple Indian jets using China’s J-10C aircraft.
Both France and China are pitching their Rafale and J-10C fighters to Indonesia. The country has already bought a batch of French-origin jets and could order more fighters.
Indonesian Deputy Defense Minister Donny Ermawan Taufanto said during a public discussion in Jakarta that China has offered the J-10C jets to the country. The jets were reportedly offered when Indonesian Air Force representatives visited China.
The Minister stated that the government was examining whether the aircraft, widely used by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF), could meet operational requirements and be integrated with existing Indonesian platforms.
He emphasized that the review is still in its early stages and that Jakarta has not dispatched a team to conduct a technical examination or follow up on the offer.
However, the alleged shootdown of an Indian Rafale by a Pakistani J-10C has got the Chinese excited!
Dave Laksono, a member of the Commission at the House of Representatives, which oversees defence, defended the government’s decision to buy Rafales, saying that any “unverified claims in conflict zones cannot be used as the sole basis for assessing the effectiveness or failure of a particular weapons system”.
“In modern military history, even the most advanced jets such as the F-16, F/A-18, and F-22 have experienced incidents of being shot down or crashed due to certain tactical conditions,” Laksono said. Therefore, the performance of the Rafale cannot be measured by just one incident that has not even been fully confirmed.”
However, Jennifer Kavanagh from the US think tank Defense Priorities said, “It will take time and significant reorientation by Chinese arms manufacturers for the country to be a big arms exporter.”
She noted that China “cannot mass-produce certain key inputs, including aircraft engines”.
Brian Hart of CSIS cautioned against “reading too much” into recent developments. “I don’t think you can make direct comparisons to how these Chinese-made systems would fare in different environments against more advanced adversaries like the United States,” he explained.
“Since the number of data points is small and since we don’t know much about the proficiency and training of the personnel on either side, it is hard to draw definitive conclusions,” said Kavanagh.
While the Rafale and J-10C are “dogfighting”, it appears Turkish KAAN has emerged as the winner for now!
With inputs from Agence France-Presse
