The US is on schedule to remove Turkey from the F-35 manufacturing line when its contract ends in 2022, US Air Force secretary nominee Frank Kendall told the Senate this week.
“Under the current situation with Turkey, I think we should not be making F-35 parts in Turkey,” Mr Kendall said in his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.
When pressed by committee members, Mr Kendall confirmed he would work to terminate the manufacturing of some F-35 parts in Turkey “as soon as possible".
Turkey was expelled from the F-35 programme in 2019 over its acquisition and deployment of the Russian S-400 missile defence system and Congress slapped sanctions on the country the following year.
Ankara joined the F-35 consortium in 2002 and the Turkish government had planned to buy 100 of the aircraft.
US officials fear Russia could use the S-400 system to acquire intelligence on the F-35 and Nato defence systems.
Last month, the Pentagon notified Ankara that it is no longer party to the new memorandum of understanding signed between the F-35 consortium countries.
Turkish suppliers, however, such as Turkish Aerospace Industries, continue to manufacture parts for the F-35, though the contract is due to end in 2022.
Aaron Stein, director of research at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, saw Mr Kendall’s remarks as further confirmation that the F-35 supply chain from Turkey is winding down.
"This process has been ongoing. The US began with identifying alternative suppliers for the parts Turkey makes, in particular the single source parts, then certifying those US-based suppliers, and then ramping up production to meet future demand for the F-35," Mr Stein told The National.
“The date officials have given for the total wind down is 2022, which is what Mr Kendall just confirmed.”
Removing Turkey from those contracts “is a big deal”, Mr Stein argues, given that the production of the F-35 “will continue for at least four decades".
But US manufacturers told Congress last month that removing Turkey from the supply chain could increase costs by 3 per cent.
Matthew Bromberg, head of the Pratt & Whitney military engines division, told the House Armed Services Committee that Ankara produces “some of the most critical parts of the engine and the Turkey suppliers were high quality, low cost".
Mr Stein agreed that the process would add cost in the short run but said “those costs are not arduous and will flatten out over time".
US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman is due to arrive in Turkey this week.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Bharatanatyam
A ancient classical dance from the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Intricate footwork and expressions are used to denote spiritual stories and ideas.
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Top%2010%20most%20competitive%20economies
%3Cp%3E1.%20Singapore%0D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Switzerland%0D%3Cbr%3E3.%20Denmark%0D%3Cbr%3E4.%20Ireland%0D%3Cbr%3E5.%20Hong%20Kong%0D%3Cbr%3E6.%20Sweden%0D%3Cbr%3E7.%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E8.%20Taiwan%0D%3Cbr%3E9.%20Netherlands%0D%3Cbr%3E10.%20Norway%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
- A full-scale Frankfurt Kitchen designed by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, which transformed kitchen design in the 20th century
- Torrijos Palace dome
RESULTS
6.30pm: Handicap (rated 95-108) US$125,000 2000m (Dirt).
Winner: Don’t Give Up, Gerald Mosse (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).
7.05pm: Handicap (95 ) $160,000 2810m (Turf).
Winner: Los Barbados, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
7.40pm: Handicap (80-89) $60,000 1600m (D).
Winner: Claim The Roses, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.15pm: UAE 2000 Guineas Trial (Div-1) Conditions $100,000 1,400m (D)
Winner: Gold Town, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
8.50pm: Cape Verdi Group 2 $200,000 1600m (T).
Winner: Promising Run, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.
9.25pm: UAE 2000 Guineas Conditions $100,000 1,400m (D).
Winner: El Chapo, Luke Morris, Fawzi Nass.
