The Turkish Air Force has inducted a modern, locally-made electronic warfare pod for its F-16 Fighting Falcons in Konya.
Built by Ankara’s Informatics and Information Security Research Center (TÜBİTAK BİLGEM), the Electronic Support Pod (EDPOD) is an advanced countermeasures kit that can be used to identify and locate signals used by missile guidance and target illumination radars.
This technology can also track and acquire the estimated location of enemy assets while recording signatures in real-time for coordination between the aircraft, radar operators, other military forces, and post-mission analysis.
Once activated, the EDPOD will be supported by a dedicated Mission Data File Preparation, Test and Analysis Laboratory, also launched during the ceremony in Konya.
The electronic threat defense suite’s addition to the Turkish military’s inventory followed its successful flight tests against real radar systems.
‘Strategic Contribution’
TÜBİTAK BİLGEM noted that the EDPOD project supports the government’s objective of maximizing national resources for innovative concepts and decreasing reliance on the foreign supply chain.
“Developed with the aim of reducing our country’s external dependency in defense technologies, EDPOD has made a strategic contribution to our electronic warfare capabilities,” Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır said.
“I congratulate all our colleagues who contributed and thank our Ministry of National Defense and Presidency of Defense Industries for paving the way for the development of national systems.”
Currently, the Turkish Air Force employs over 200 F-16s, most of which were assembled domestically under a licensing agreement between F-16 developer General Dynamics and state-owned Turkish Aerospace Industries.
In June 2024, the country signed a foreign military sale with the US for the purchase of 40 new jets in their latest configurations and an upgrade for older aircraft through local projects.
