Agency: Erdogan wears a tie bearing a drawing of the fighter “Qan” for this reason

On Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wore a red tie bearing drawings of the Qan fighter plane during the Republic Day celebrations at the Ataturk Mausoleum in the capital, Ankara, according to what was reported by the Turkish Anatolia news agency. Erdogan and Türkiye's leaders visited Ataturk's shrine on the occasion of Republic Day, while the necktie he wore caught attention, and it bore drawings of the Turkish fighter Qan.

Turkey celebrates Republic Day on October 29 of each year, to commemorate its declaration by its late founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923. Erdogan wore a blue tie decorated with drawings of the fighter Qan during the meeting of the parliamentary bloc of the Justice and Development Party, on the day that witnessed the signing of the Badr Memorandum of Understanding between Turkey, Qatar, Indonesia and Pakistan on October 21, according to the Anadolu Agency.

The Turkish agency said that Erdogan's re-selection of the red version of the same design on Republic Day "highlights Türkiye's assertion of its independence in its airspace and its support for national aviation projects." According to Anadolu, the Turkish Aerospace and Aerospace Industries Company "Tusas", the developer of the "Qan" fighter, has remained silent about the tie. Türkiye continues to develop the Qan, which is planned to gradually replace F-16 aircraft within the Turkish Air Force, starting in the 2030s.

“Qan” is equipped with new generation technologies, such as low detectability, an internal weapons compartment, and high maneuverability, which makes Turkey join the countries capable of producing fifth-generation fighters, along with the United States, Russia, and China, according to the Anadolu Agency.