ISTAMBUL: Turkey will purchase two F-35 fighter jets and 15 helicopters from the US, a government committee has said.
The Defence Industry Implementation Committee said Thursday it has authorised the defence ministry undersecretariat to order the purchase of the fighter jets for the Turkish armed forces, Xinhua reported.
The fighter jets will be delivered in 2015, it said.
The committee said it would also start contract talks with American manufacturer Bell Helicopter Textron for the purchase of 15 helicopters for the country's police force.
The purchase comes as part of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Programme, an internationally oriented programme consisting of Turkey's partnerships with a number of countries. Turkey signed a memorandum of understanding in 2007 on its involvement in the production of new generation F-35 warplanes.