Türkiye’s defense and aviation exports climbed nearly 48% in 2025 compared to the previous year, exceeding $10 billion and setting a new benchmark for the sector, a senior official said on Saturday.
“We are completing 2025 at $10.05 billion with an increase of approximately 48%,” stated Haluk Görgün, head of the Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB), noting that the sector’s exports were $7.1 billion in 2024.
Görgün said the sector set a historic record in December, as defense and aviation exports topped $2.5 billion. He added that exports included $9.87 billion in goods and $184 million in services.
“We completed exports at $7.1 billion in 2024, and we are completing 2025 at $10.05 billion with an increase of approximately 48%. When we look at the creation of backlog orders in terms of signed contracts, we completed 2024 with $10 billion in new contracts, while we completed 2025 with $17.8 billion; that is, a growth of 78%,” he affirmed.
Görgün said the growth in defense industry exports becomes more evident when viewed as a share of Türkiye’s overall exports. In 2022, defense and aviation exports totaled $4.4 billion, accounting for 1.7% of the country’s total exports. Today, that share has risen to 3.7%, marking a significant increase.
Türkiye signed a military ship export contract with Portugal and later in the year secured a deal with Spain for the Hürjet training aircraft. In June, a contract for the Kaan fighter jet was signed with Indonesia, while an offshore patrol vessel agreement was concluded with Romania.
Görgün added that numerous contracts for unmanned aerial vehicles and munitions were also finalized across the Gulf and African regions, bringing the year’s total to a record $17.8 billion in new agreements.
Reviewing export destinations, Görgün noted that four of the top 10 markets last year were European countries, along with the United States. Overall, about $5.6 billion—56% of the $10 billion in exports—went to the European Union, NATO members, and the U.S., while Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa followed as key regions.
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