Asger Risom
The Trump administration is bypassing congressional resistance to push through a $700 million sale of General Electric F110 engines for Turkey’s new Kaan fighter jet. The major policy shift keeps Turkey’s next-gen fighter on track while opening the door for Ankara to potentially rejoin the F-35 program.
In one of the most significant shifts in U.S.-Turkish defense relations in years, the Trump administration is preparing to push through a massive, $700 million engine sale to power Turkey’s flagship next-generation fighter jet, the TF Kaan.
The long-awaited move not only breathes new life into Ankara’s domestic stealth fighter program but also signals a major warming of ties between the two NATO allies, sparking intense speculation that a deal for the elite F-35 fighter could be back on the table.
Resuscitating a flagship fighter program
The twin-engine TF Kaan is the crown jewel of Turkey’s rapidly expanding military aerospace industry. First launched in 2010, the next-gen jet successfully completed its maiden flight in early 2024, with Turkey planning to eventually mass-produce 250 of the aircraft. While designed with a reduced radar signature and advanced avionics, the fighter suffers from one major vulnerability: it is completely dependent on foreign propulsion.
According to a report by The War Zone, the Kaan relies entirely on American-made General Electric F110 turbofan engines. While Turkey assembles these engines under license for its massive fleet of F-16s, U.S. export restrictions have tightly restricted Ankara from acquiring the initial batch of 80 engines required to scale up Kaan production.
While Turkish engineers hope to eventually build a fully domestic engine, that reality is years away. Securing this $700 million American deal is the only way to keep the Kaan program on track for its target service entry around 2030.
Bypassing congressional roadblocks
The upcoming sale marks a dramatic turnaround from 2019, when defense relations between Washington and Ankara completely collapsed. At the time, the U.S. kicked Turkey out of the F-35 joint strike fighter program and froze subsequent arms deals after Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan refused to abandon a purchase of Russian-made S-400 long-range missile defense systems.
The decision to clear the F110 engines is not without friction in Washington. Leading Democrats in Congress, including Representative Gregory Meeks of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, have actively tried to stall the engine transfer during informal review processes, citing lingering concerns over Turkey’s human rights record and its complex ties to Russia.
However, President Trump has made it clear he intends to override congressional resistance. Ahead of an upcoming NATO summit in Turkey, Trump praised Erdogan as a “strong member of NATO” and signaled his intent to finalize the deal, with insiders expecting a formal State Department notification to hit Congress in the coming days.
A pathway back to the F-35?
Beyond the immediate boost to the Kaan fighter, the engine deal serves as a massive stepping stone toward resolving the broader diplomatic rift between the two nations. Speaking alongside Trump, Vice President JD Vance confirmed that a formal review is currently underway to determine if Turkey can legally be readmitted to the F-35 program.
The desire to re-enter the F-35 family has taken on an intense urgency for Ankara, especially since its historic regional rival, Greece, was recently approved to purchase the elite American stealth jets.
However, the path forward remains bound by rigid security laws. U.S. law strictly prohibits Turkey from rejoining the F-35 program while it simultaneously operates the Russian S-400 system, due to fears that Russian tech could be used to spy on the stealth jet’s capabilities. While American diplomats have floated the idea of swapping the S-400s for American Patriot missile batteries, the upcoming F110 engine sale proves that Washington is willing to compromise on hardware in the short term to bring a critical NATO ally back into the fold.
