Turkish aviation history has entered a new era with a groundbreaking achievement that will shape the future of the nation’s air power. For the first time, an F-16 fighter jet equipped with ASELSAN’s MURAD Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar successfully fired the indigenous Gökdoğan beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile developed by TÜBİTAK SAGE. Although both systems had undergone separate test phases before, this marks the first occasion on which a Turkish-designed radar and a Turkish-designed air-to-air missile were integrated and used together on a combat aircraft.

The test was conducted using an F-16 platform—an important detail considering the aircraft forms the backbone of Türkiye’s air fleet. Most F-16s currently in service still rely on older-generation radars, which offer limited detection range and target-processing capability compared to modern AESA systems. AESA radars provide the ability to scan wider areas, detect threats earlier, track multiple targets simultaneously, and maintain strong performance even against low-observable aircraft. The successful integration of MURAD onto an F-16 demonstrates that the system has matured faster than expected and is ready for widespread deployment.

This achievement also creates momentum for the upcoming ÖZGÜR-2 modernization program, under which a large portion of Türkiye’s F-16 fleet is expected to be upgraded with AESA radar technology. When combined with future platforms—including 12 Eurofighters expected from Qatar, 20 advanced Typhoon models planned from the UK, the national fifth-generation fighter KAAN, and Turkish UCAVs such as Kızılelma and AKINCI which will also feature AESA radar—the outcome is a significantly strengthened, multi-layered Turkish air combat architecture.

The use of the Gökdoğan missile in this historic test adds another dimension to Türkiye’s evolving air dominance strategy. As one of the longest-range air-to-air missiles currently under development in the country, Gökdoğan requires advanced radar capabilities to realize its full performance potential. AESA radars play a critical role in enabling modern missiles to lock onto distant targets with precision. The integration of both indigenous radar and missile technologies in a single test demonstrates Türkiye’s accelerating progress toward a fully independent and high-performance air combat capability.

Taken together, these developments signal far more than a routine test—they illustrate a transformative step in Türkiye’s air warfare doctrine. By pairing its own radar, missile and fighter modernization efforts, Türkiye is rapidly elevating its role in regional and global air power dynamics.