Bozkırda Bir Uçak Fabrikası: Erken Cumhuriyet Türkiye’sinde TOMTAŞ’ın Kuruluşu Üzerine Bir İnceleme
Öz
Bu çalışma, Cumhuriyet’in ilk yıllarında kurulan TOMTAŞ'ı, Birinci Dünya Savaşı sonraı dönemi şekillendiren askerî ve sivil havacılık dinamikleri bağlamında değerlendirmektedir. Çalışma, Birinci Dünya Savaşı sırasında Avrupa'da, özellikle Almanya ve Fransa'da gelişen havacılık endüstrisinin teknik ve ekonomik etkisini incelemekte ve bu birikimin Türkiye'nin bozkırında bir uçak montaj fabrikasının kurulmasına nasıl zemin hazırladığını incelemektedir. Çalışmada, döneme ilişkin Devlet Arşivleri Başkanlığı Cumhuriyet Arşivi (BCA), Dışişleri Bakanlığı Türk Diplomatik Arşivi (DBA) ve istatistiksel veriler kullanılarak tarihsel belge analizi yapılmıştır. Bulgular, Almanya'nın Versay Antlaşması sonrası uçak üretimini yurtdışına taşıma stratejisi ile Türkiye'nin ulusal savunma sanayisi kurma hedefinin TOMTAŞ ortaklığında kesiştiğini göstermektedir. Ayrıca, Türkiye’deki söz konusu havacılık sanayi girişiminin, Fransız ve Alman nüfuzu altında oluştuğu da tespit edilmiştir. Sonuç olarak, TOMTAŞ’ın kurulması yalnızca endüstriyel bir girişim olarak değil, aynı zamanda Avrupa’daki savaş sonrası güç dengeleri ile Türkiye’nin bağımsız savunma kaygılarının kesiştiği noktada ortaya çıkan havacılık endüstrisinin ilk deneyi(mi) olarak değerlendirilmektedir.
Anahtar Kelimeler
An Aircraft Factory in the Anatolian Steppe: A Study of TOMTAŞ’s Foundation in Early Republican Turkey
Abstract
The First World War marked a turning point in the history of aviation, transforming it from a military instrument into a foundation for global civil air transport. The war had accelerated advancements in aircraft production, engine technologies, and aviation infrastructure, creating a vast pool of technical knowledge and skilled labor. However, the post-war period brought a dramatic contraction in military demand, forcing major European powers—particularly Germany and France—to redirect their aviation industries toward civilian applications. Germany, restricted by the Treaty of Versailles, sought to maintain its aeronautical capacity by relocating aircraft production abroad. Junkers Flugzeugwerke AG became a central actor in this process, establishing production facilities and partnerships outside German borders, including in the Soviet Union, Sweden, and Turkey. In contrast, France consolidated its fragmented aviation industry through state control, integrating private manufacturers and airlines under nationalized structures such as Air France. Within this complex European rivalry, the establishment of the TOMTAŞ Aircraft Assembly Factory in Kayseri, Turkey, emerged as a significant episode in both Turkish industrialization and international aviation history.
This study aims to examine the establishment of the TOMTAŞ Aircraft Assembly Factory as a historical case that reflects the intersection of post–World War I military-industrial restructuring in Europe and the early modernization efforts of the Turkish Republic. The primary objective is to demonstrate how the wartime accumulation of technological expertise, industrial capacity, and strategic ambitions influenced the foundation of an aircraft assembly industry in central Anatolia. The research highlights the dual motivations behind TOMTAŞ: Turkey’s quest for self-sufficiency in defense production and Junkers Flugzeugwerke’s strategy to circumvent Versailles restrictions while expanding its presence in the Middle East.
The study employs a historical-documentary research method, utilizing archival records, government decrees, and contemporary industrial data. Primary and secondary sources—including diplomatic correspondences, production statistics, and company archives—are analyzed to reconstruct the geopolitical and economic context surrounding the establishment of TOMTAŞ. The research follows a comparative approach, situating the Turkish case within broader European aviation developments, particularly the contrasting paths of Germany and France during the interwar period. Through qualitative analysis, the study identifies structural connections between global industrial transformations and local technological adoption in early Republican Turkey.
The findings reveal that the foundation of TOMTAŞ in 1926 was not merely a bilateral industrial venture but a reflection of global post-war dynamics. Junkers’s initiative in Turkey aligned with its broader network of international production sites, aimed at bypassing the Versailles Treaty’s military prohibitions and securing access to emerging aviation markets. The collaboration between Junkers and the Turkish Aeronautical Association (Türk Tayyare Cemiyeti) represented a convergence of interests: for Germany, a means of sustaining its aerospace industry abroad; for Turkey, an opportunity to initiate a domestic aviation capability essential for national defense. Furthermore, archival evidence indicates that TOMTAŞ was established amid Franco-German competition over influence in Turkey. France, through its airline companies such as CFRNA and CIDNA, sought to dominate air transport rights, while Germany pursued industrial cooperation through aircraft manufacturing. This rivalry, intertwined with internal Turkish political divisions between Francophile and Germanophile factions, shaped the trajectory and challenges of the TOMTAŞ project.
Technically and economically, the Kayseri facility embodied a transfer of advanced industrial knowledge into a region previously lacking such infrastructure. Despite limited local technical capacity, the establishment of an aircraft assembly line in the Anatolian steppe demonstrated the Republic’s determination to build an indigenous defense industry. The collaboration, however, faced difficulties stemming from Junkers’s financial instability, inter-European competition, and logistical limitations. Ultimately, while TOMTAŞ’s operational lifespan was short, its establishment signaled Turkey’s entry into the global aviation industrial network and symbolized the interwar struggle between national aspirations and transnational capital movements.
The study concludes that TOMTAŞ represented a unique convergence of geopolitical strategy, industrial modernization, and technological diffusion. From the German perspective, the project served as a means to sustain military-industrial continuity under international constraints.
Keywords
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