Terrorists Attack Headquarters Of Turkish Aerospace Industries

ISTANBUL—A terrorist attack on the headquarters of Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) on Oct. 23 has left five dead and more than 20 wounded, government officials say.

Gunfire and explosions were heard at the company site west of Ankara. Images published online show assault rifle-equipped attackers apparently attempting to breach the main gate.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed the death toll in a statement from Kazan, Russia, where he is attending a meeting of the BRICS nations of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Erdogan said the attack on TAI, which he described as one of the country’s symbols of becoming a “fully independent Turkey,” was “vile.”

He added that “our fight against all kinds of terrorist threats and their supporters will continue with determination, resolve and in a multidimensional manner.”

Both attackers were “neutralized” by Turkish security forces, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on social media.

Government officials have pointed the finger at the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) militant group, which Turkey has been fighting off and on since the 1970s. But the group has not taken responsibility for the attack.

Many members of TAI’s senior management team are currently away from the facility attending the Saha Expo defense event in Istanbul. Company CEO Mehmet Demiroglu returned to Ankara this evening, while several events related to the show have been canceled.

Turkey’s Radio and Television Supreme Council issued a broadcast ban on the attack, preventing media companies from publishing imagery from the scene.

The facility in Ankara is TAI’s primary site hosting design, development and production activities for the company’s fixed and rotary-wing aircraft and uncrewed aircraft systems, as well as subassembly production for several other aerospace OEMs.