The state of play
Where the file stands
Türkiye was one of the partner nations that helped build the F-35 Lightning II, and its flag is still painted on the fuselage of display aircraft. Washington removed it from the program in July 2019 after Ankara took delivery of the S-400 air-defense system from Russia. Seven years later Türkiye has neither given up the S-400 nor got the aircraft back.
The political weather has changed. The legal position has not. On 27 July 2026 President Trump, asked aboard Air Force One about Israeli objections to a sale, said nobody tells him what to sell and called Türkiye a tremendous ally. Five days earlier his own State Department had written to Congress that American policy was unchanged and that Türkiye has not met the conditions set in law. Both statements stand.
Two related tracks have moved while the aircraft has not. In July 2026 the congressional review period lapsed without objection on the export of American F110 engines for Türkiye's own KAAN fighter, and that sale went through. Separately, CAATSA sanctions imposed over the same S-400 purchase remain a live question in the relationship, and Ankara says the two files move together.
How we cover this
This file generates a great deal of political statement and very little legal change, and the two are easy to confuse. On this page, laws, letters, formal notifications and completed transfers are facts of record. Statements by presidents, ministers and lawmakers are marked as statements and attributed to who made them, however senior the speaker.
A promise to consider a sale is not a sale. An expression of goodwill is not a waiver. Where a condition has been met we will say so; where it has not, we will say that too, whichever government it favours.
The obstacle
What US law requires
In a letter to Congress dated 22 July 2026, the State Department set out what Türkiye must do before it can return to the program. These are the conditions as the department described them.
- Give up the S-400 air-defense system bought from Russia. Not met. Ankara has not agreed to surrender the system.
- Give up the equipment that came with it. Not met.
- Guarantee that Türkiye will never acquire a comparable system again. Not met. No such assurance has been made public.
- Satisfy the remaining certification requirements written into US law. Not met. No waiver has been signed.
Ankara has not publicly responded to the letter. Its stated position, given by Hulusi Akar, who chairs Türkiye's parliamentary defense committee, is that the S-400 question will be resolved one way or another and that the F-35 process will follow. He has not said how.
The timeline
How it unfolded
- Fact of record
- Legal step
- Statement
- Expected
- Pending ExpectedBenjamin Netanyahu meets President Trump in Washington on 28 July 2026. No waiver has been signed, and none of the four statutory conditions has been met.
- 27 July 2026 StatementSpeaking aboard Air Force One about Israel's objection to a sale, Trump says "Nobody tells me what we should be selling" and calls Türkiye a tremendous ally that has done a very good job in the region, Syria included. He acknowledges Ankara is no great fan of Israel or of Netanyahu. AA, Times of Israel
- 22 July 2026 Legal stepThe State Department writes to Congress that American policy has not changed and that Türkiye has not met the legal conditions for returning to the program, listing the S-400 disposal, the related equipment, an assurance against future purchase, and the statutory certification. TurkishPress reporting, 25 July 2026
- 17 July 2026 StatementIn Washington, Hulusi Akar tells reporters the S-400 question will be resolved one way or another and the F-35 process will follow. He does not say how.
- 16 July 2026 StatementRepresentative Mike Turner says a bipartisan delegation that met Turkish officials at the Ankara summit came away encouraged. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, who helped write the legislation that removed Türkiye from the program, is counted among those who share the view. No waiver is signed.
- 15 July 2026 Akar meets House Armed Services Committee leaders in Washington as the file reopens.
- 9 July 2026 Legal stepThe 15-day congressional review window shuts on the export of American F110 engines for Türkiye's KAAN fighter, which has flown on them since February 2024. A resolution to block the sale, filed on 2 July, never left committee, and the engines clear without a vote. This is a separate transaction from the F-35 and does not affect the conditions above.
- July 2026 StatementNetanyahu tells Fox News that Türkiye is "a regime infected by the Muslim Brotherhood" and says: "I don't think they should be given F-35s or engines." Times of Israel
- 7 July 2026 StatementAt the NATO summit in Türkiye, Trump says he would certainly consider restoring sales to Ankara and calls Türkiye much more loyal than other countries.
- 3 July 2026 StatementForeign Minister Hakan Fidan says Erdoğan and Trump share a strong will to lift the CAATSA sanctions imposed over the S-400 purchase.
- July 2019 Legal stepWashington removes Türkiye from the F-35 program after it takes delivery of the S-400 from Russia. Türkiye had been both a buyer and a parts supplier to the program.
The coverage
Our reporting
The file
Trump dismisses Netanyahu on the F-35. The law has not moved. 27 July 2026 · the president against his own department A US letter sets out what Türkiye must do to get the F-35 25 July 2026 · the four conditions, in writing US lawmakers call Türkiye's F-35 return 'very promising' 16 July 2026 · Congress warmer than the law it wrote Akar meets House Armed Services leaders as the F-35 file reopens 15 July 2026 Trump vows to lift Türkiye's sanctions and weigh its return to the F-35 7 July 2026 · at the Ankara summitThe surrounding files
Congress let the clock run out, and KAAN's engines cleared 10 July 2026 · the engine export that did go through Erdoğan and Trump share a 'strong will' to lift CAATSA, Fidan says 3 July 2026 Greek ex-PM Tsipras calls Türkiye's fighter-jet gains a 'national defeat' 11 July 2026 · the view from AthensAbout this tracker
How this page works
This is a running record, updated as the file develops. Each entry is written in our own words with its source named in the line; nothing here republishes wire copy. The timeline marks what is settled and what is not: solid points are facts of record, red points are legal steps, and hollow points are statements attributed to who made them.
The scope is Türkiye's removal from the F-35 program and the effort to reverse it, together with the S-400 and CAATSA questions that govern it and the KAAN engine export that ran alongside it. The four conditions listed above are the State Department's, as reported to Congress on 22 July 2026, and their status will be updated as each is met or remains open.