Turkish Missile Could Be Integrated on F-35.

AuthorMachi, Vivienne
PositionGlobal Defense

* A new stand-off missile developed for F-35 joint strike fighters heading to Turkey could end up on U.S. aircraft as well.

Roketsan, an Ankara, Turkey-based weapons manufacturer, has developed the Standoff Missile-JSF, or SOM-J, made specially to fit the F-35's weapon bay, said Ersin Dag, the company's product engineer.

The latest variant of the country's air-to-surface missile has a range of nearly 135 miles, weighs approximately 1,333 pounds and includes multiple guidance systems, including GPS, an imaging infrared seeker and automatic target acquisition, according to the company. It features a semi-armor piercing warhead and can be used to target ships, surface-to-air missile sites, strategic assets and exposed warcraft.

The missile could soon be certified to go on Turkish joint strike fighters. Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the F-35, expects to begin delivering 100 aircraft in 2018, with the jets expected in country in 2019, according to the company.

Lockheed partnered with Roketsan to provide certain aspects of capability development and integration of the SOM-J onto the Turkish F-35, including mission planning and data link information, said Alan Jackson, vice president of strike systems for Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control.

Jackson's office is also working with the company's aeronautics division on integration requirements that would later be made available to U.S. F-35s, he...

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