Turkey’s Hürkuş, the training plane gets first European approval

Local training plane gets first European approval

Turkey’s Hürkuş, the training plane, was revealed in a ceremony late last month.The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has granted Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) design certification for its ongoing Hürkuş project, a training plane.

TAI had applied for the safety certification in 2007. This was the first time a Turkish body had received such a certification from EASA.  The document approves that the Turkish side can develop safe planes that are matches with European regulations.

TAI revealed Hürkuş, or “free bird” in English, the domestically designed, developed and produced aircraft for both military and civilian usage, with a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Defense Minister İsmet Yılmaz, Development Minister Cevdet Yılmaz, and Chief of General Staff Necdet Özel on june 27.

The Hürkuş, a pilot trainer plane, will be used to conduct basic pilot training, instrument flying, navigation training, as well as weapons and formation training missions. The aircraft is expected to be exported as a civilian and military flight trainer aircraft.

The first Hurkus prototype will carry civilian use specifications. It is built adhering to the EASA CS 23 standards. Upcoming prototypes will have military standards. The last and most developed version of Hurkus will carry weapons in the future. The development program of the Hurkus began in March 2006 as part of the contract signed between the SSM and the TAI. The agreement covered four aircraft to be designed, built, examined, verified and certified by the TAI. The aircraft was named after Turkey’s first aviator Vecihi Hurkus. Hurkus’s daughter will participate in the ceremony, and her parents are expected to fly from U.S. in order to attend ceremony.

23.07.2012

SOURCE: HDN