The Satellite 2019 exhibition and conference, which is attended by the world’s leading satellite manufacturers and operators, opened its doors in the capital city of Washington DC. Türksat attended the exhibition alongside TUSAŞ, Aselsan and Profen.
At the opening ceremony of the Turkish pavilion, Turkey’s Ambassador to Washington DC, Serdar Kılıç said the following:
“I would like to thank Türksat, TUSAŞ, Aselsan and Profen for attending Satellite 2019. By being here you have made us extremely proud. You have given us the opportunity to show Americans that ‘This is Turkey, this is technology that Turkey has.’”
In his speech, Ambassador Kılıç noted that in recent years Turkey had come a long way in this field and that this progress must be announced to the whole world. He emphasized that Satellite 2019 was one of the most important events in the United States.
Kılıç, who noted that during his duty in Japan he had the opportunity to see the production of the Türksat 4A and 4B satellites on site. He added that among the important projects in this field are the Türksat 5A and 5B satellites along with Turkey’s first national and domestically built satellite Türksat 6A.
Kılıç noted that these projects shows Turkey’s progress in the field of satellite communication. He continued:
“This is of great importance in the field of national security. Changing how our allies view Turkey or seeing us from a different perspective is also of great importance. For this reason, I would like to thank Türksat, TUSAŞ, Aselsan and Profen for attending Satellite 2019. By being here you have made us extremely proud. You have given us the opportunity to show Americans that ‘This is Turkey, this is technology that Turkey has.’”
Gönül: It is vital that we make Turkey’s name known in this sector
In his speech Türksat Chairman of the Board M. Vecdi Gönül said the following:
“These companies have a major role in today’s efforts across the border. We are proud of their existence but we expect a lot from them. With the digital world’s existence, technology quickly began to develop, but in fact satellite technology developed at even faster rate. For this reason it is very important for us to show solidarity and support each other in this sector and make Turkey’s name be known.”
Gönül emphasized that today’s efforts are in the field of science and technology, and that if there is science and technology behind the efforts of other fields, then it will take humanity further.
Gönül recalled that the companies Turkey boasts about today, 20 years ago were on the verge of bankruptcy. He went onto to say, “Today, these companies are making a name for themselves with their helicopters, airplanes and unmanned aerial vehicles. For me, the most important thing here is that these projects are being done together.”
He added that Profen, a company from the private sector, is doing very well in terms of antennas and hopes they will keep on doing well.
Gönül recorded that Aselsan has been the subject of pride by becoming a permanent supplier to Airbus, and that it has gone onto to proving itself by becoming a company that at one point was buying from the Netherlands to now selling Kaideye Monteli Stinger (KMS) to the Netherlands.
Gönül noted that these companies have a major role in today’s efforts across the border. He added, “We are proud of their existence but we expect a lot from them. As a state and as individuals we hope we will go further than the point reached today.”
After the speeches, the opening of the stands were done with Ambassador Serdar Kılıç, Türksat Chairman of the Board M. Vecdi Gönül, Türksat CEO Cenk Şen, Türksat Vice President Hasan Hüseyin Ertok, TUSAŞ Vice President Dr. Selman Nas, Head of Aselsan Space Technologies Division Şenol Uzun, Profen Group Senior Executive Önder Havuzlu and Executive Committee Member Kamil Yüksel in attendance.