What began as a crisis-driven initiative to overcome military embargoes has evolved into one of Türkiye’s most ambitious technological success stories. 

Aselsan, the country’s flagship defence electronics company, is marking its 50th anniversary this month — a milestone that military veterans, engineers and government officials say represents far more than the founding of a corporation.

“It is, in fact, the 50th anniversary of Türkiye’s own information revolution,” says Mesut Hakki Casin, a defence expert and professor of international law and security.

A short film released by Aselsan to commemorate the milestone provides the background of the company’s formation.

The film shows a soldier in Cyprus imagining a future in which Türkiye has achieved full technological autonomy. 

The narrative intertwines the soldier’s struggles on the battlefield with Aselsan’s gradual technological ascent, symbolising a 50-year march from foreign dependence to indigenous capability.

The film highlights milestones, including the production of Türkiye’s first national radio, advancements in electronic warfare, and the development of the ‘Steel Dome’ -  the country’s layered air-defence architecture. 

The soldier’s steady movement across the front line is framed as a metaphor for Aselsan’s journey from a small radio manufacturer to a defence producer with more than 700 advanced products across communications, radar, electro-optics, cybersecurity and unmanned systems.

In service of the nation

Aselsan’s leadership sees the company’s anniversary not only as a commemoration but as a reaffirmation of its mission, driven by the belief that “those who love their homeland the most are those who perform their duty best”.  

“For half a century, we have strengthened our heroic armed forces with the advanced technologies we have developed in nearly every field of defence electronics,” Aselsan CEO Ahmet Akyol tells TRT World.

Citing the company’s presence in 24 countries, he says this is expanding Türkiye’s sphere of influence. 

“Aselsan technologies, developed through the ingenuity of Turkish engineers, contribute significantly to our country’s strong and esteemed stature on the global stage.”

Aselsan today ranks as the 43rd-largest defence company in the world, employing more than 13,000 engineers and specialists. 

Last year, it recorded between $500 million and $800 million in exports, delivering systems to 80 countries across 15 regions. 

Its Ogulbey Technology Campus in Ankara, inaugurated recently, is described as one of the largest defence investments in the history of the Turkish Republic.

A turning point

Casin explains that Aselsan’s creation marked a strategic turning point after decades of dependency on foreign systems. 

“After joining NATO, our core weapon and communication systems were tied directly to the United States. During the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation, when American radios went silent, the Turkish Army suddenly found itself without communication. This vulnerability sank the battleship ‘Kocatepe’ (in a communication breakdown) and jeopardised our forces,” he tells TRT World.

Those setbacks— followed by arms embargoes — led to the founding of Aselsan on November 14, 1975, with the aim of developing Türkiye’s first national radio and restoring self-reliance in critical technologies.

Casin, who had once served the military as a communications officer, describes Aselsan as “the institution that grants Türkiye information dominance in the electronic warfare environment of the 21st century,” emphasising the rise of cyberwarfare, unmanned systems and multi-domain military doctrine.

“Türkiye has reached a level where it can resist every kind of espionage, sabotage and disinformation operation,” he says. 

“Thanks to Aselsan, we can defend ourselves in the cyber domain, in the air, under the sea, in space and on the battlefield.”

He emphasises that many of Aselsan’s NATO-compliant systems are now exported to allied nations, a reversal of the circumstances that existed during the embargo era. 

“Türkiye now sells communication systems, electronic jamming devices, cryptographic technologies and cyberwarfare capabilities worldwide,” he says.

Aselsan-made systems have been deployed in counterterrorism operations within Türkiye and abroad. 

Its technologies support platforms such as the Altay battle tank, the KAAN national combat aircraft, the Hurjet, the Atak and Gokbey helicopters, and the Akinci unmanned aerial vehicle.

Casin notes that these systems now operate in an integrated digital architecture that allows encrypted communication between pilots, ground forces, naval vessels, satellites and national air-defence networks. 

“For the first time,” he says, “the entire battlespace picture can be projected simultaneously onto the desks of the President and the Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff.”

Casin describes Aselsan as “the gleaming sword of the Turk in information warfare,” capable of algorithmic target selection, electronic attack and, in the future, even anti-satellite operations. 

“Aselsan has become the leading company of Türkiye’s digital revolution,” he adds. 

“It shines from our submarines beneath the seas to our warplanes in the sky — from our intelligence satellites to the autonomous weapon systems of the future.”

“When embargoes closed the doors,” Casin concludes, “Türkiye opened its own. That is the story of Aselsan.”