Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ) has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Airbus and a consortium of 15 Spanish companies, collectively known as “Team Spain,” to collaborate on the development of Spain’s next-generation jet trainer program.
This agreement, finalized at the Feindef defense expo in Madrid, centers on creating a new Integrated Training System (ITS-C) intended to replace the Spanish Air Force’s fleet of 19 F-5M trainer jets, which have been operational for over five decades.
The collaboration seeks to leverage Airbus’s expertise in aircraft design, manufacturing, and pilot training alongside TUSAŞ’s Hürjet jet trainer. The Hürjet, a supersonic, twin-seat aircraft built to train pilots for advanced fighter jets, is poised to play a pivotal role in Spain’s upcoming training infrastructure.
Building on a prior partnership between TUSAŞ and Airbus, this new agreement expands to include several Spanish industrial partners. It also aims to strengthen defense relations between Turkey and Spain while supporting the modernization of Spain’s military pilot training capabilities.
Currently under development, the Hürjet is designed to achieve speeds of Mach 1.4 and features sophisticated onboard and ground-based training technologies. It is expected to be introduced into the Turkish Air Force by 2026.
Lt. Gen. Miguel Ivorra Ruiz, responsible for defense-industry planning at Spain’s Ministry of Defense, highlighted the wider implications of this collaboration, calling it “a step toward a robust, strategic, and innovative industrial partnership,” and noted it would place Spanish firms at the heart of a globally oriented project.
