What Turkey’s Fighter Choices Indicate About Its Air Force’s Future

“The Typhoon has the edge over both Gripen and Rafale in terms of Beyond Visual Range (BVR) combat, top speed, acceleration, maneuverability, service ceiling and climb rate,” wrote Justin Bronk, the senior research fellow for airpower and technology in the Military Sciences Team at the Royal United Services Institute, earlier this year. “It is widely considered to be the most capable air superiority fighter of the three and is also a potent strike aircraft with excellent sensors but slightly reduced ordinance-carrying capacity compared to the Rafale.”