RAF Coningsby welcomed the first two Turkish Air Force (Türk Hava Kuvvetleri) pilots who have begun training on RAF Typhoon fighters as part of an £8 billion deal with Türkiye to deliver 20 Typhoon aircraft.
These experienced Combat Air pilots will undertake their training with 29 Squadron, the Royal Air Force’s Typhoon Operational Conversation Unit, based at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire.
Their conversion training will take up to nine months, with follow-on instructor training taking a further three months.
Following graduation from their training courses, the pilots will remain with 29 Squadron as instructors until Türkiye receives their first delivery of new Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft, from BAE Systems, in 2030.
“It was an honour to welcome the first two Turkish Air Force pilots as they engage on their conversion training onto the Eurofighter Typhoon, where they will operate side by side with Royal Air Force personnel.
They will spend the initial weeks of training learning Typhoon systems, and the procedures used in UK military airspace before they launch on their first sortie. I know that these Turkish pilots are incredibly excited about this new venture and are extremely proud to have been selected as their nation’s first ever Typhoon Pilots.”
Group Captain Batu, Programme Director,
Türkiye Programme Management Office
The UK and Türkiye contract is worth over £8 billion for 20 Typhoon fighter jets and the associated weapons, support and training needed to operate the aircraft. The deal will help to sustain a 20,000 strong UK wide workforce, across production lines in Edinburgh, Warton, Samlesbury and Bristol.
The Turkish agreement will strengthen Türkiye’s national Combat Air capabilities whilst bolstering NATO’s presence in a key operational region of the world and enhancing the strategic partnership between both our air forces.
Typhoon jets continue to demonstrate their formidable capabilities as the mainstay of RAF combat air operations. Deployments include:
- NATO Air Policing: Securing NATO’s eastern border and reinforcing collective defence.
- Quick Reaction Alert: Providing 24/7 protection of UK airspace for homeland security.
- Operation Shader: Supporting counter-Daesh operations in Iraq and Syria. In July, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Türkiye signed a new Security and Defence Partnership at the NATO Summit in Ankara, marking a significant milestone in their strong strategic partnership.
The Partnership reflects their shared determination as two major European NATO Allies to further strengthen and institutionalise their co-operation in response to the evolving Euro-Atlantic security environment.
