Turkey Unveils ‘Steel Dome’ Air Defense Shield

Turkey has officially launched its ‘Steel Dome’ integrated air defense system, a nationwide shield designed to counter aerial threats from drones to ballistic missiles.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed that 47 vehicles worth $460 million, including radars, anti-aircraft batteries, and electronic warfare systems, had been delivered to the Turkish military. “This week, we made very important deliveries at ASELSAN, we added 47-vehicle Steel Dome systems to our army,” he said on August 30.

The program, launched in August 2023 by the Defence Industry Executive Committee (SSİK), is led by Aselsan with Roketsan, TÜBİTAK SAGE, MKE, and subcontractors.

The Steel Dome is being built with domestic technology, part of Ankara’s strategy to cut reliance on foreign suppliers. Turkey’s 2019 purchase of Russian S-400 missile systems and its subsequent removal from the U.S.-led F-35 program highlighted the urgency of self-reliance.

“No country that cannot develop its own radar and air defense system can look to its future with confidence in the face of current security challenges, especially in our region,” he said.

The President announced construction of a $1.5 billion defense technology base and new Aselsan facilities opening in 2026. 

With the facility, the base "will cover 585,000 square meters of indoor space and 132,000 square meters of production area, becoming one of the region's most advanced defense technology centers," Erdogan said.

The Steel Dome integrates:

Short range: Korkut guns, Sungur missile systems, C-RAM platforms.

Medium range: Hisar-A+, Hisar-O+, and upcoming Gokdemir interceptors.

Long range: Siper missiles, with Block-3 interceptors expected to reach 200 km.

Supporting assets include ERALP and Kalkan radars, AI-backed HAKIM command-and-control, and naval links with TF-2000 destroyers and MİDLAS launchers.

The Steel Dome has been compared to Israel’s Iron Dome, but Turkey’s larger territory could make permanent nationwide coverage difficult, with full deployment unlikely before the 2030s.

Intercepting threats remains costly. Turkey is investing in laser weapons such as Alka and Gokberk to reduce reliance on missile interceptors.

The Steel Dome could later be offered to allied states.