Indigenous Turboshaft Helicopter Engine

The TEI TS1400 is Turkey's first indigenous turboshaft engine, delivering 1,400 shaft horsepower for helicopter applications. The engine completed its maiden flight integrated on the TAI T625 Gökbey utility helicopter, marking a critical milestone in Turkey's engine sovereignty roadmap. Serial production was planned for the 2024-2025 timeframe to power production Gökbey helicopters.

Helicopter engines have been a persistent bottleneck for Turkey's rotorcraft ambitions. The T129 ATAK attack helicopter relies on LHTEC CTS800 engines subject to US/UK export approval — a vulnerability exposed when Canada blocked sensor exports during the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. The TS1400 program directly addresses this dependency, creating an indigenous powerplant for the Gökbey and future rotorcraft.

Beyond the Gökbey, the TS1400 represents the foundational step in TEI's engine development strategy. The gas turbine technologies, manufacturing processes, and testing infrastructure developed for the TS1400 directly feed into the larger TF35000 fighter engine program. Turkey is methodically building engine capability from smaller to larger platforms — a strategy that parallels how China developed its WS-10 and WS-15 programs.