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Airbus Defense and Space is looking to deepen its partnership with Türkiye, drawing on the country's satellite expertise as it works to advance its own technological capabilities, a senior company official said.
Carlo Mirra, sales director of Airbus’ corporate business growth and development unit, told Turkish news agency Anadolu that the company is closely monitoring Türkiye’s expanding focus and growing industrial capacity in the space sector.
Mirra said aerospace ties between Airbus and Türkiye could expand further through direct industrial collaboration or intergovernmental agreements involving Türkiye, the European Space Agency, the European Commission or Airbus’ founding nations.
His remarks come as Türkiye prepares to host the 77th International Astronautical Congress, or IAC 2026, in the southwestern city of Antalya under the coordination of the Industry and Technology Ministry and the Turkish Space Agency.
Mirra expressed strong interest in the event, noting that he had never visited Antalya before.
He said he began working with the IAC and the International Astronautical Federation in 1989 and currently chairs the federation’s industrial relations committee while managing ESA business relations at Airbus.
“I’m dealing primarily with European business, although I have a past in international business, especially in the U.S.; nevertheless, we are observing here the rapid growth of the political attention and also industrial capacity in Türkiye, and as you know, our company in particular has been present in Türkiye for quite a while,” he said.
“The release of the National Space Program, the space plan, the flight of the astronauts, the ambition to have independent access to space are all important messages that the current political administration in Türkiye are giving in order to let the local industry develop and also emerge in the international environment,” he added.
Mirra said the IAC serves as a springboard for this goal, with more than 1,800 abstracts already submitted by Turkish institutions for the technical conference.
“This is providing a direct channel for Turkish researchers and industries also to present their technologies, the progress of their studies, to a truly international environment—from green propulsion to small satellite architectures, I think that this will be a very interesting confrontation for all of them,” he said.
He said both established companies and startups will meet international prime contractors and investors during the event.
Mirra emphasized that establishing leadership in space diplomacy is important, adding that hosting IAC 2026 demonstrates Türkiye’s credibility in operating within a global environment.
“Türkiye is really committed to playing a major role in this area, and this is proven also by the organization and investment into these events,” he said.
“I think that this is providing, in terms of international cooperation, in terms of space sustainability and security, a very strong message in order to reinforce existing relationships and create new ones,” he added.
Mirra highlighted Türkiye’s population of 85 million, with an average age of 33, contrasting it with aging European demographics.
“This is a phenomenal potential to educate the space engineers and the scientists of the next decade — you have the resources and the manpower to develop this capacity,” he said.
“Europe is aging fast, we have ambitions in terms of programs, but the difficulty is in finding and educating qualified engineers,” he added.
Mirra said Türkiye’s capacity to cultivate motivated experts would support its long-term economic and technological objectives.
“And I’m sure that a conference like the IAC will have a very positive effect, especially with students and young generations,” he said.
Mirra said Airbus representatives in Ankara are working through the company’s permanent office to advance partnership-focused models.
He confirmed that negotiations with the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye, or TUBITAK, are continuing.
“I observe three to four areas—there are some where the cooperation may be more direct and involved, certainly in lunar exploration,” he said, referring to ongoing talks between Airbus and TUBITAK on lunar exploration, human spaceflight and satellite communications.
Mirra said Airbus played a key role in supporting Türkiye’s capacity through the Turksat satellite program and that the company aims to broaden its footprint.
“That is certainly an area where we would like to maintain the relationship and possibly also broaden that, either as a sort of industrial cooperation, but also under a government-to-government partnership,” he said.
“If there is a Turkish government, for example, making a deal with the European Commission or with ESA or with some of the mother countries of Airbus, namely France, Germany, Spain and U.K., that is certainly something where we have an interest, so that is a development that we are observing with a lot of attention,” he added.
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