Turkey touts propellant breakthrough for Yıldırımhan long-range ballistic missile

ISTANBUL — The Turkish Ministry of National Defense (MND) unveiled details about the Yıldırımhan long-range ballistic missile during the SAHA Expo 2026 defense exhibition here this week.

“We have elevated our work to a more advanced level through the technology base we established two years ago within our Ministry of National Defense R&D Center,” Turkish Defense Minister Yaşar Güler said during a press conference on Thursday.

“Our Yıldırımhan Long-Range Missile represents a significant technological milestone as Turkey’s first liquid-fueled rocket missile system, capable of hypersonic-speed flight and possessing the country’s longest range,” he added.

According to information provided by the MND, the Yıldırımhan missile uses unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine as fuel and dinitrogen tetroxide as the oxidizer. The ministry stated that the missile is capable of carrying a 3-ton warhead to a range of 6,000 kilometers.

The country has been working on hypersonic technologies and liquid-propellant propulsion systems for nearly a decade, the director-general of the Turkish Ministry of National Defence’s R&D Center, Nilüfer Kuzulu, told Turkish broadcaster NTV Türkiye.

Kuzulu stated that after initially producing small quantities of the propellants in laboratory conditions, the ministry eventually transitioned to serial production and integrated the technology into the Yıldırımhan missile program.

The development of the propellant technology represented a major technical challenge because the chemicals had not previously been produced domestically in Turkey.

“Developing this fuel is extremely difficult, and it was not something previously manufactured in Turkey,” she said. “What began as small-scale laboratory work years ago has now been transformed into serial production. We now have both the production capability and the associated production facility.”

MND sources said the Yıldırımhan Missile System has successfully completed laboratory testing and will enter field or ground testing in the coming period. Work on the field-testing campaign is continuing according to the planned schedule.

“As part of the National Technology Initiative, our Ministry will continue with determination to support the development of our defense industry, develop indigenous and national systems, and enhance Türkiye’s strategic deterrence capability,” the ministry stated.

Cem Devrim Yaylali is a Turkey correspondent for Defense News. He is a keen photographer of military ships and has a passion for writing about naval and defense issues. He was born in Paris, France, and resides in Istanbul, Turkey. He is married with one son.

伊斯坦布尔——本周，土耳其国防部在伊斯坦布尔举行的 SAHA Expo 2026 防务展上公布了 Yıldırımhan 远程弹道导弹的详细情况。

土耳其国防部长亚沙尔·居莱尔周四在新闻发布会上表示：“我们通过两年前在国防部研发中心建立的技术基础，将我们的工作提升到了一个更先进的水平。”

“我们的‘耶尔德勒姆汉’远程导弹代表着一个重要的技术里程碑，它是土耳其首个液体燃料火箭导弹系统，能够以高超音速飞行，并且拥有该国最远的射程，”他补充道。

据国防部提供的信息，Yıldırımhan导弹使用不对称二甲基肼作为燃料，四氧化二氮作为氧化剂。国防部表示，该导弹能够携带3吨重的弹头，射程达6000公里。

土耳其国防部研发中心主任尼吕费尔·库祖鲁告诉土耳其广播公司NTV Türkiye，该国已经从事高超音速技术和液体推进剂推进系统的研究近十年了。

库祖鲁表示，在最初于实验室条件下生产少量推进剂之后，该部最终过渡到批量生产，并将该技术整合到 Yıldırımhan 导弹计划中。

推进剂技术的开发是一项重大的技术挑战，因为这些化学品以前在土耳其国内没有生产过。

“研发这种燃料极其困难，而且土耳其以前从未生产过，”她说。“多年前的小规模实验室研究现在已经转化为批量生产。我们现在既具备生产能力，也拥有相关的生产设施。”

国防部消息人士称，“耶尔德勒姆汉”导弹系统已成功完成实验室测试，并将于近期进入实地测试阶段。实地测试工作正按计划进行。

“作为国家技术倡议的一部分，我部将继续坚定支持国防工业发展，开发本土和国家系统，并增强土耳其的战略威慑能力，”该部表示。

杰姆·德夫里姆·亚伊拉利是《防务新闻》驻土耳其记者。他热衷于拍摄军舰，并对海军和国防议题充满热情。他出生于法国巴黎，现居土耳其伊斯坦布尔。他已婚，育有一子。