Türkiye seeks surplus Eurofighters from Oman and Qatar, says Erdogan

The Turkish president has said he is negotiating for the buy of Eurofighter combat aircraft from Oman and Qatar (pictured). (Janes/Gareth Jennings)

Türkiye is looking to buy surplus Eurofighter combat aircraft from both Oman and Qatar, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on 24 October.

Speaking to reporters following a visit to the Gulf region, Erdoğan said that talks for the procurement that are part of a wider build up of Türkiye's air combat capabilities are progressing well.

“We discussed the ongoing negotiations with the Qatari and Omani sides regarding the purchase of Eurofighter warplanes,” the AP newswire quoted the president as saying. “The talks on this technically detailed matter are progressing positively.”

Erdoğan's comments came months after Türkiye and the United Kingdom signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in July related to the procurement of Eurofighter combat aircraft. While the MOU did not disclose potential aircraft numbers, Eurofighter has previously said Türkiye is looking to acquire 40 newbuild Tranche 5 aircraft.

It had previously been reported that ahead of a contract for newbuild aircraft, Türkiye would acquire approximately 20 Tranche 1 aircraft recently retired by the UK Royal Air Force (RAF) so as to help build up the Turkish Air Force's proficiencies on the type and to address its immediate requirements. Turkish media has reported that progress on this prospective deal has stalled, and that Türkiye is now looking to acquire Omani and Qatari Tranche 3+ jets instead. Oman has 12 such aircraft in service, while Qatar has 24.

The Eurofighter consortium had not responded to a request from Janes on this potential Turkish procurement of Omani and Qatari jets at the time of publication.

For more information on Türkiye's Eurofighter procurement, please see