Successfully Holds Tests Of Russian S-400 Competitors, Turkey Will Have Six Different Air Defense Systems

Siper test shooting (Source: Courtesy via Anadolu Agency)

JAKARTA - Turkey has successfully tested the Siper long-range air defense missile system, a top defense official said Saturday.

Different tests of the domestic air defense system, which are planned to enter the army inventory in 2023, will continue, Ismail Demir, head of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB), tweeted.

He said Turkey would continue to produce new weapons and would have up to six different air defense systems.

The Siper project is led by Turkish defense giant Aselsan, Roketsan, and the Defense Industry Research and Development Institute (SAGE) of the Turkish Scientific and Technological Research Council (TÜBITAK).

Developed to protect strategic facilities from enemy attacks within the scope of regional air defense, Siper will enable long-range air defense and in distributed architectural protection.

In addition to the Siper, which is expected to rival Russia's S-400, Korkut, Sungur, and Hisar air defense systems also exist, systems set to outline a layered air defense for the country, as officials have mentioned several times.

In this context, the first delivery within the scope of serial production of the Korkut system was made in 2019, and the Sungur air defense system also entered service.

Developed by Roketsan, Sungur will be integrated on land, air, and sea platforms with its portable features.

The air defense system features firing on the move, along with effective target detection, diagnosis, identification, tracking, and 360-degree day and night firing capabilities.

The Sungur is ahead of its class in terms of effectiveness, high maneuverability, capacity, and high target countermeasures. It is equipped with a titanium warhead and has a sight capability that allows the target to be seen from a long distance.

While deliveries of the Hisar-A missile low-altitude air defense missile system have begun, mass production of Hisar-O missiles has also begun. The Hisar-A system's interception range is 15 kilometers (9.3 miles), while that of the Hisar-O system is 25 kilometers. The Siper, on the other hand, is meant to be at a level that can compete with the S-400.

In March, the Hisar-O+ medium-range air defense system, an upgraded version of Hisar-O, successfully completed a test fire, which was the longest-range and highest-altitude test conducted in the country to date. The air defense system is expected to destroy all types of air threats created by fixed and rotating wing aircraft, helicopters, cruise missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and air-to-surface missiles in adverse weather conditions.