Lockheed Martin has said it will take Turkey out of its manufacturing supply chain for the F-35 fighter jet by March 2020 and use alternative US sources. The announcement followed a Department of Defense decision to take Turkey out of its F-35 programme because of security concerns after it decided to buy a Russian missile defence system. Turkey will also not be able to buy the completed aircraft and Poland is being tipped as a potential replacement customer. In an interview with Reuters, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was elected in 2014, said: “[Turkey] cannot continue buying from Russia or any other country that does not respect human right@@ The aircraft generates about one third of Lockheed Martin’s revenues.
Lockheed Martin has said it will take Turkey out of its manufacturing supply chain for the F-35 fighter jet by March 2020 and use alternative US sources. The announcement followed a Department of Defense decision to take Turkey out of its F-35 programme because of security concerns after it decided to buy a Russian missile defence system. Turkey will also not be able to buy the completed aircraft and Poland is being tipped as a potential replacement customer. Lockheed is set to deliver 131 F-35s this year. The aircraft generates about one third of Lockheed Martin’s revenues.