20 Sep 2026
Why did Turkey buy Russian S-400 air defense systems?
The Turkish authorities decided to purchase the Russian S-400 air defense systems to strengthen their Air Forces, which lost many pilots after the coup attempt in 2016, The National Interest reports.
Fighter pilots aren’t cheap. The US Air Force estimates that training a new pilot to fly a plane like the F-35 costs $11 million. And that doesn’t count the priceless experience of a veteran pilot who has been flying for years. That’s why the US Air Force is willing to offer half-million-dollar bonuses to retain experienced fighter pilots.
The trouble began on July 15, 2016, when members of Turkey’s military ‘allegedly’ launched a coup to topple the Islamist government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The word allegedly is used for a reason. Despite being pros at overthrowing civilian governments (with four successful coups between 1960 and 1997), the 2016 effort was laughable, the report said.
As Erdogan was flying back to Istanbul from vacation, two Turkish Air Force F-16s had his aircraft in their sights but failed to shoot it down.
In the aftermath of July 15, with the operations against the Turkish Armed Forces, there was a reduction in the number of F-16 pilots, creating a need to develop our air defense. This is the reason for the S-400 purchase, said Turkish analyst Verda Ozer.
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