Turkey is developing an integrated air defense network called the Steel Dome, designed to link all air defense systems and provide comprehensive protection using entirely domestic technology. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan outlined the project's vision in 2024, saying "we will execute the Steel Dome project, which we will develop to be an integrated system in all its elements, God willing… if some have an iron dome, we will also have a steel dome."
The Steel Dome relies on the SIPER air and missile defense system as its long-range backbone, paired with the Alp 300-G radar for long-range detection and tracking, both produced domestically. Murat Ikinci, general manager of Roketsan, a major Turkish defense contractor, told Al Jazeera's investigative program "The Investigator" that the Steel Dome is being developed "with purely Turkish capabilities and embodies the essence of the drive toward national defense independence."
The Alp 300-G radar was entirely developed within Turkey from electronic components up to the complete system as part of SIPER, according to Bora Kartal, radar programs director at Aselsan, another leading defense firm. Kartal said the radar performs a function similar to Russia's S-400 search radar and that "when comparing its performance to S-400 radars, it surpasses them in several aspects."
The Steel Dome is an integrated infrastructure project comprising subsystems to cover all Turkish territory, according to Zein Hussein, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The project faces technical challenges, including the complexity of developing long-range defense capabilities that integrate seamlessly into the broader system and the difficulty posed by Turkey's geographical expanse.
Ikinci emphasized that air defense "is an endless race requiring continuous investment and constant updating," given evolving threats ranging from small explosive-laden drones to hypersonic ballistic missiles. Turkey's defense industry has pursued several major indigenous weapons programs over the past half century, according to an Al Jazeera documentary that examined the country's military manufacturing sector.
