Koç group's Otokar 'ready for the mass production' of Turkish indigenous battle tank Altay

Turkish defense and civil industry firm Otokar, a branch of the leading Koç Group that undertook the design phase of Altay battle tanks, has said it is ready to undertake the mass production of the country's first ever domestic tank. 

"If we are assigned to the task, we are ready to fulfill all the obligations with the highest sensitivity and ambition in the Altay tank project, which is Turkey's biggest land systems project," Anadolu Agency quoted Otokar's board chairman, Ali Koç, as saying on April 3. 

"We are ready for the job, with our human resource, from the subcontractor to our workers, experience, abilities and our passion to serve the best for our country," said the chairman.

"We believe that the interest that the countries who are friends and allies have taken in the Altay tank will present a positive effect on defense industry exports in the long term," Koç also said. 

The mass production of the Altay tank is among the main agenda items in Otokar's future goals. Otokar, in accordance with the "Modern Tank Production Project with National Opportunities - 1st Period Turkish Main Combat Tank Design and Prototype Production Main Agreement" signed with the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM) in 2008, has completed the development process and prototype production.

While the user system qualification and acceptance tests were ongoing, the proposal on serial production was presented to the SSM on Jan. 18 in accordance with the agreement and project schedule. After the SSM's evaluation, an opinion about the mass production process will be formed.

The Altay Project 2nd Period Mass Production Project involves the production of 250 tanks and their integrated logistical support activities.

The...