Türkiye has officially confirmed the start of construction of its 300-metre national aircraft carrier, marking a major milestone in the country’s naval modernisation drive.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, alongside senior naval commanders, announced that Turkish shipyards are currently building 39 warships simultaneously, reflecting the scale and pace of Türkiye’s domestic defence production programme.
Speaking on December 20, 2025, Erdoğan outlined a long-term roadmap for fleet development that includes a national aircraft carrier, advanced destroyers, submarines, and offshore patrol vessels. He confirmed that construction of the new carrier is now underway and noted that it will be larger than the TCG Anadolu, Türkiye’s flagship amphibious assault ship.
A steel-cutting ceremony for the aircraft carrier — known as the MUGEM project — was held in January 2025. Since then, the design has undergone major revisions, expanding the vessel beyond its original specifications.
Initially planned at 285 metres in length with a displacement of 65,000 tonnes, the carrier has now been extended to 300 metres, placing it among the world’s largest aircraft carriers. At this size, it surpasses France’s Charles de Gaulle and is longer than the UK’s Queen Elizabeth-class carriers, approaching the scale of US nuclear-powered flattops such as the USS Gerald R. Ford.
While detailed technical specifications have not yet been disclosed, the announcement formally moves the carrier from concept to active construction, aligning it with several other high-profile naval programmes already in progress.
Naval leadership confirmed that work on the aircraft carrier is proceeding in parallel with the TF-2000 national destroyer programme and Türkiye’s first domestically built submarine, ATILAY. In addition, surface fleet expansion includes Hisar-class offshore patrol vessels, with one ship already delivered and several others under construction.
Erdoğan also highlighted Türkiye’s growing footprint in the global defence market, stating that the country now ranks 11th worldwide in defence exports, generating more than $8.6 billion in revenue. The government has set an ambitious target of $11 billion in defence exports by 2028, underlining the strategic importance of domestic shipbuilding and defence manufacturing.