Turkish Air Force to deploy Siper long-range air defense system by end of 2024.

On February 28, 2024, Ahmet Akyol, the General Manager of Aselsan, provided updates on Türkiye's Siper Long Range Area Air and Missile Defense System during an interview with Anadolu Agency. He stated that the Siper system is scheduled to be operational within the Turkish Air Force Command by the end of 2024, completing a comprehensive Turkish air defense layer that will also include the Gürz, Hisar-O, and Hisar-O+ systems.
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The future deployment of the Siper Block-II missile will allow the Siper air defense system to reach a range of 150 km. (Picture source: Turkish Defence Industries Presidency)

Additionally, Akyol confirmed the commencement of development on the Siper Block-3 missile, although the specific capabilities of this new missile were not disclosed. In recent years, Türkiye has been developing and acquiring various air defense systems, including the Gürz, Korkut, Sungur, and Hisar, alongside the Siper, as part of its efforts to enhance national defense capabilities. Initiated by the Turkish Defence Industries Presidency (SSB) in 2018, the Siper system, a joint project by Aselsan, Roketsan, and the Tübitak Sage research institute, has been positioned as a counterpart to systems like Russia's S-400 air defense system.

The Siper Long Range Air and Missile Defense System is designed to defend strategic assets against various aerial threats, such as aircraft, cruise missiles, air-to-ground missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The system's distributed architecture allows for flexible deployment options, accommodating both close and remote placements. The system supports multiple simultaneous engagements and successive firing, and can be integrated with air, naval, and land forces for coordinated command and control through tactical data links.

The Siper structure is organized into a Command and Control Level and a Battery Level. It includes a Command and Control Center and Long Range Surveillance Radar for operation management and threat surveillance. The Battery Level contains a Fire Control Center, Fire Control Radar, Missile Launching System, Missile Transport Loading System, Long Range Missiles, Communication Systems, support equipment, and a Class Type Training Center, all designed to support operational requirements and readiness.

The integration of the Siper system with radar networks and high-value broadcast systems (HvBS) aims to enhance detection and tracking capabilities, providing a broad surveillance and engagement framework. Features include various engagement modes (manual, semi-automatic, and automatic), integrated air picture generation, multi-target multi-radar fusion, and terminal guidance with RF Seeker, among others.

Designed to operate in various conditions, including day, night, and adverse weather, the Siper air defense system supports vertical and oblique launching capabilities, offers a maximum interception range of 150 km, engagement altitudes between 0.1 and 30 km, and 360° coverage. It can track up to 100 targets and has the capability to engage up to 10 targets simultaneously at the battery level while providing guidance for up to 20 missiles.

The system's first firing test occurred in December 2022 at a test range in Sinop, northern Türkiye, where the Siper Block 1 missile successfully engaged a high-speed aerial target at a range exceeding 100 km (62 miles). The system demonstrated multi-target and multi-radar fusion capabilities, with announcements indicating that the Siper hit a long-distance target in its final test on May 12, 2023. The Siper Block-I Missile is expected to target aerial threats within a range of over 70 km and up to an altitude of over 20 km, with these capabilities expected to expand with the future deployment of the Siper Block-II missile, reportedly reaching a range of 150 km.