The Turkish aviation industry is going through a historic turning point. Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu announced that a very critical threshold has been crossed for the T625 GÖKBEY General Purpose Helicopter. Minister Uraloğlu presented the Airworthiness Certificate, covering the aircraft, engine, and rotor design, to the President of the Presidency of Defence Industries, Prof. Dr. Haluk Görgün, in an official ceremony. This development definitively proves that the domestic helicopter can now fly in accordance with civil aviation standards and international regulations.
What Does the Airworthiness Certificate Mean?
In the aviation industry, producing a platform is not a sufficient step on its own. Engineers subject the platform to a much more rigorous testing process to certify it according to international civil aviation standards. This document, issued by the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (SHGM), officially confirms that the GÖKBEY is flawless in terms of aerodynamic design and flight performance.
Furthermore, this certificate covers not only the helicopter's airframe but also certifies that the helicopter's engine architecture, transmission systems, and rotor systems are completely reliable. Thus, Türkiye joins the select few countries that can certify a rotary-wing aircraft, along with all its critical sub-systems, through its own civil aviation authority.
Transition from Military Platform to Civil Market
TUSAŞ engineers conceived the GÖKBEY project from the beginning not only for military needs but for a very wide range of civilian uses. The received civil aviation approval completely expands the helicopter's mission definition in the field.
In the coming period, GÖKBEY will join the Ministry of Health inventory and save lives as an "Air Ambulance." Furthermore, the platform will rapidly replace foreign-origin helicopters in civilian missions such as VIP transport, search and rescue, forest firefighting, and coastal safety. Consequently, state institutions will be saved from paying millions of dollars in foreign currency for imported aircraft.
Export Doors Wide Open
This certificate also demonstrates the engineering peak reached by our domestic and national aviation capabilities. No state or private company in the global aviation market will purchase an aircraft without civil authority approval (Type Certificate / Airworthiness).
GÖKBEY's successful completion of this challenging bureaucratic and technical examination directly elevates the platform's export potential on the international stage.
