A Turkish delegation arrived in Israel on 10 January in a fresh attempt to solve a dispute linked to the supply of Israeli-made unmanned air vehicles to the Turkish army.
Israel Aerospace Industries and Elbit Systems launched a joint programme to provide the systems following the signature of a $190 million contract between the Turkish defence ministry and the Israel UAV Partnership in May 2007.
IAI is manufacturing Heron medium-altitude, long-endurance air vehicles under the deal, while Elbit is providing their ground control stations. The aircraft will be powered by a Rotax 100hp (75kW) gasoline engine, with Turkey's Aselsan to supply mission payloads.
The Turkish defence ministry has demanded compensation worth $50 million due to programme delays, with the two sides continuing to blame each other for the problems.
The current talks follow a visit by an Israeli delegation to Turkey last December. "We hope that this dispute will be solved soon," says an Israeli source.
Separately, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control has received a $118 million contract to produce Lantirn ER navigation pods and Sniper advanced targeting pods for the Turkish air force's Lockheed F-16 Block 40 and Block 50 fighters.
Lockheed says the Sniper system will "expand the F-16's ability to conduct non-traditional intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations".
Source: Flight International
