MİTÜP Altay MİTÜP ( an acronym for Milli Tank Üretim Projesi , i . e . " National Tank Production Project " ) nicknamed Altay by the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries ( SSM ) , is the official name of planned Turkish national main battle tank . History . The project was initiated with an agreement signed between Otokar and SSM of the Republic of Turkey on March 30 , 2007 ; when the Defense Industries Executive Committee , chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan , awarded a contract worth approximately $ 500 million to Otokar for the design and development of 4 prototypes of a new national main battle tank . This will be Turkey ' s first MBT development program since 1943 , when prototypes of a Turkish national tank were produced in the city of Kırıkkale , but never reached full - scale mass production . Otokar , a company owned by Istanbul - based Koç Holding , is authorized to select its local partners or sub - contractors , but the foreign technology suppliers will be selected by the SSM ( Undersecretariat for Defense Industries ) in line with an assessment report that will be prepared by Otokar . Development . In order to improve the current technical capabilities of the Turkish defense industries and increase the amount of domestic contribution towards national defense , the Undersecreteriat for Defense Industries decided that a " National Tank " will serve as an excellent catalyst for uniting certain Turkish defense companies around a common goal and for providing the Turkish military with extra firepower in the form of a modern tank . Three local sub - contractors have already been selected : The military - owned electronics firm Aselsan will manufacture and integrate the Volkan - III modular fire control system ; a partnership between Aselsan and STM ( Undersecretariat of Defence Technologies ) for the command , control and information systems ; and state - owned MKEK ( Mechanical and Chemical Industries Corporation ) for the production and integration of the armor and the Rheinmetall 120 mm gun . Once the prototypes are produced and tested , the Undersecreteriat for Defense Industries of the Republic of Turkey will prepare and execute a separate order for the first lot of 250 tanks . A total of 1 , 000 new MBTs are planned to be produced in four separate lots of 250 units . Every delivered lot is expected to have additional upgrades . Design . The tank is planned to have a 120 mm smoothbore gun and will be able to protect itself from chemical , biological and radioactive attacks . The planned maximum speed is set at 70 kilometers per hour , thanks to a 1800 hp ( 1324 kW ) engine ( the first two batches will have 1500 hp engines ) , and the MBTs will be able to function under 4 . 1 meters of water . The tank will benefit both from indigenously developed systems and from the armor technology of the South Korean K2 Black Panther , thanks to a $ 540 million agreement signed with South Korea . The candidates for the engines were the German MTU Friedrichshafen or the new South Korean engine which is currently under development . On 16 June 2008 , it was announced by the Turkish Defence Procurement office ( SSM ) that it has decided to commission the development of 1800 hp ( 1324 kW ) indigenous turbine engine for use in the Turkish made armoured personnel carrier s and main battle tank , the first two batches will be powered by the MTU engines whereas the last two batches will be powered by an indigenous 1800 hp engine . The initial 3D design of Turkey ’ s new main battle tank , Altay , was released on April 7 , 2010 during a press release by SSM , which also marked the completion of the M - 60T modernization program . Altay appears to share strong chasis characteristics with its technological base , the South Korean K2 Black Panther , with a re - designed Turkish turret and Aselsan ’ s state - of - the - art Volkan - III modular fire control system . The number of wheels have been increased to seven , which translates to a longer hull , heavier armor and increased survivability . According to reports , a military envoy from Colombia was also present at the press meeting to obtain more information about the tank . First prototype . The head of the Turkish Undersecretariat for Defense Industries ( SSM ) , Murad Bayar has confirmed at the 9th IDEX International on 29 April 2009 , Defense Industry Fair in Abu Dhabi , UAE , that the Turkish tank will be manufactured using only Turkish resources . He added that the research started last week and that he expected to create an authentic tank model specially designed for the needs of the Turkish Armed Forces ( TSK ) within 3 years .