According to Al-Monitor's news dated September 9, 2026, Türkiye and Egypt are evaluating the possibility of Cairo's participation in the KAAN program.
Turkey's fifth generation fighter jet, KAAN, is entering a new era in terms of international partnerships.
According to Al-Monitor's news dated September 9, 2026, Türkiye and Egypt are evaluating the possibility of Cairo's participation in the KAAN program. It is reported that this possibility may not be limited only to aircraft supply, and including Egypt in the joint production process is also among the options.
However, at this stage, there is no final joint production agreement signed by the two countries on KAAN. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the development not as Egypt's definitive inclusion in the KAAN program, but as a new diplomatic and defense industry contact where the partnership model is discussed.
This development is especially important for KAAN. Because for the first time, Türkiye is considering the possibility of combining the aircraft's development and production ecosystem with the industry of a different country on a larger scale.
Why is Egypt important?
In addition to being one of the largest military powers in Africa and the Middle East, Egypt has an extensive defense industry infrastructure.
Especially on the air force side, Cairo has platforms supplied from different sources such as F-16, Rafale, MiG-29 and Su-35. This diversity may make KAAN one of the potential options if Egypt acquires a fifth-generation fighter jet capability in the future.
However, the possible KAAN cooperation is not expected to consist only of Egypt's aircraft needs. The most striking point is the possibility of including Egypt's production capability into the KAAN ecosystem.
Al-Monitor also points out that Turkey is evaluating joint production and technology transfer opportunities, as well as direct sales, while developing its defense relations with Egypt.
Defense relations accelerated on the Ankara-Cairo line
Behind the KAAN talks are Türkiye-Egypt defense relations, which have accelerated recently.
The two countries agreed to develop cooperation in the fields of industry, technology transfer and joint production at the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council meeting in February 2026. In the joint statement published by the Egyptian Presidency, it was emphasized that supporting mutual investments and joint industrial projects and strengthening cooperation in the fields of technology transfer, innovation and capacity development.
Contacts in the field of defense also intensified thereafter.
On July 13, 2026, the defense ministers of Türkiye and Egypt signed a letter of intent on defense cooperation. During the same visit, a separate letter of intent for defense industry cooperation was signed between Defense Industry President Haluk Görgün and Egyptian Ministry of Defense officials.
This framework shows that the possible joint production model discussed on KAAN is not a completely independent development.
KAAN was also exhibited in Egypt
Turkey's defense industry initiative towards Egypt also showed itself at the El Alamein International Aviation Fair held in September.
Turkey's new generation fighter plane KAAN was also exhibited at the fair attended by TAI, ASELSAN and MKE. According to Al-Monitor, the fair was one of the important indicators of Ankara's goal of deepening defense industry relations with Cairo and creating new export opportunities.
The display of KAAN in a country like Egypt, where there is a regional air power, shows that the aircraft is positioned not only as a technical platform, but also as one of the systems at the center of Turkey's future defense export portfolio.
What does joint production mean for KAAN?
If Egypt is included in the program, the scope of the partnership will be critical.
Joint production model; It can be implemented at different levels, such as the production of certain structural parts of the aircraft in Egypt, the involvement of Egyptian defense industry companies in subsystems, the establishment of maintenance and logistics infrastructure in the country, or the establishment of certain production lines at a later stage.
However, there is no official plan announced at this stage regarding which parts or technologies will be transferred to Egypt.
KAAN's current program is based on a broad industrial ecosystem that includes high-precision composite structures, avionics systems, radar, electronic warfare, mission computers and low visibility technologies. The Presidency of Defense Industries also lists high localization and maximum use of the capabilities of the Turkish defense industry among the main objectives of the program.
Therefore, a possible joint production may be a more likely model to proceed through the commonality of certain production and industrial work packages rather than directly sharing critical design information. This is not an official statement yet, but an evaluation based on the current structure of the program.
Strategic gain for Türkiye
Egypt's participation in the KAAN program may have several different consequences for Türkiye.
First of all, it can contribute to the growth of KAAN's production scale. Secondly, Egypt's relations in the wider African and Arab geography may create new channels for KAAN to open up to third country markets.
More importantly, the inclusion of different countries in the program as production partners can enable KAAN to transform into an international defense industry program rather than a platform affiliated with a single country in the long term.
It is known that Turkey is also in contact with Saudi Arabia regarding KAAN. Al-Monitor had previously reported that Ankara was trying to attract Riyadh to the KAAN program and the possibility of joint production was on the agenda. However, it was pointed out that full-scale joint production in Saudi Arabia was not finalized in the short term.
If the Egypt option is added, the international partnership network that Turkey has created for KAAN may expand further.
KAAN's program is progressing in Turkey
While international partnership negotiations continue, KAAN's development and production program in Turkey is also progressing.
Türkiye signed the supply contract for the mass production of KAAN between the Presidency of Defense Industries and TAI in May 2026. This contract was one of the important milestones of the program in terms of the transition from the development phase to the mass production period.
While it is planned to use US-made F110 engines in KAAN's first production aircraft, Türkiye is also working on a domestic engine solution in the long term. As of 2026, TAI continues its efforts to supply additional F110 engines to support the mass production process.
Therefore, possible partnership negotiations with Egypt are not a sales negotiation independent of KAAN's technical development process; It can be a part of the aircraft's future production, export and international industrial structuring.
Has Egypt's participation in KAAN been finalized?
For now no.
According to available open sources, defense industry cooperation between Türkiye and Egypt is developing rapidly and KAAN is reportedly on the agenda of these meetings. However, no official and detailed agreement has yet been announced regarding the scope of joint production, the level at which Egypt will be involved in the program, the financing model, production schedule or any aircraft orders.
For this reason, the most accurate approach is to describe the current situation not as "Egypt has become a partner in KAAN" but as "Turkey and Egypt are evaluating Egypt's participation in the KAAN program, which may include joint production."
