ASELSAN’s order backlog reaches $30.7 billion, above $30 billion for the first time, with $14 billion of new contracts in nine months

The order backlog of ASELSAN, the Turkish defence electronics company, passed $30 billion for the first time in its history. At the end of the first nine months of 2026, orders signed but not yet delivered stood at $30.7 billion, $7.5 billion more than in the previous quarter. At the end of 2025 the figure was $20 billion.

The figures are included in the nine-month financial results ASELSAN disclosed on Turkey’s Public Disclosure Platform (KAP) and presented in an announcement on Tuesday, October 27. From January to September the company signed new contracts worth a total of $14 billion, the highest amount it has ever recorded. New export contracts rose 34% to $1.9 billion.

The ratio of new orders to sales rose to 4.4, from 2.5 in the same period of 2025. In other words, the value of new orders ASELSAN secured was 4.4 times its sales over the same period. The company says the most significant new orders concern air defence systems, radar, electronic warfare, guidance and AI-based city security systems.

Air defence dominates the list of third-quarter contracts. ASELSAN signed with the Presidency of Defence Industries (SSB) contracts for air defence systems, hybrid air defence systems, long-range air defence systems and radar, as well as a contract with ROKETSAN for subcomponents of air defence systems. With unnamed foreign customers it signed export contracts for air defence, electronic warfare, electro-optical systems, seekers, reconnaissance and surveillance, communications and weapon systems. In early October the company had also announced its record €2.46 billion contract for hybrid air defence systems, which we covered in Turkey: record contract for ASELSAN as the “Steel Dome” advances.

Nine-month revenue rose 28% in real terms to 151.5 billion Turkish lira. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 38% to 40.6 billion lira, with a margin of 26.8% against 24.9% a year earlier. Return on equity reached 16.6%, operating cash flow 23 billion lira, and borrowing amounts to 14% of assets.

Investment in production capacity and technology rose 228%, more than tripling, to $684 million. The first phase of the Oğulbey Technology Base, which the company presents as the largest single investment of the defence industry in the history of the Turkish Republic, began operating, and a Guided Munitions Systems Production Centre was commissioned. Research and development spending rose 36% to $1.3 billion. Investment accelerated especially in satellite technologies, quantum computing, underwater systems, high-power microwaves, microelectronics, smart munitions and propulsion systems.

“2026 is a year in which ASELSAN is not just growing but changing the scale of its growth,” said chief executive Ahmet Akyol. “Our main responsibility from now on is to turn this portfolio into timely deliveries, new production capacity and technological superiority,” he added. Akyol said the company climbed three places, to 40th, in the Defense News Top 100 list and will now also provide satellite communications through the ASTRALINK low-orbit satellite programme presented at the Antalya International Space Conference. Turkey is already investing in military satellites such as Göktürk and IMECE, which we compared with Greece’s in military satellites in Greece and Turkey.

For Greece the figures are a reminder of the pace at which its neighbour’s defence industry is growing, and of why the Greek answer in air defence, the Achilles Shield, which was shown at the October 28 parade in Thessaloniki, has to be delivered on time.