The Turkish Shipbuilders' Association (GİSBİR) participated in Sea-Air-Space 2026, one of the world's most important maritime fairs held in Maryland, USA, in April 2026, showcasing Turkey's production capacity and technological strength on the international stage.

Leading maritime and defense companies came together at the Sea-Air-Space 2026 fair held at National Harbor, Maryland, USA.

At the event, which addressed the latest advancements in defense technologies and current strategic developments, hundreds of companies operating in the maritime and defense sectors, ranging from rising startups to Fortune 500 companies, showcased their products and services.

The Turkish Shipbuilders' Association (GİSBİR) also participated in the fair alongside Intel Marine and industry stakeholders, promoting the capacity and technological competence of Turkey's shipbuilding sector.

Strategic cooperation model for the US market

In a statement from GİSBİR, it was noted that the strategic cooperation model presented to the US market aims to provide fundamental solutions to the capacity needs in the maritime sector.

The statement emphasized Turkey's global production competence in response to the intensity and infrastructure needs in the US maritime sector, indicating that this model, which brings Turkey's high standards in shipbuilding and repair to the US market, aims to elevate the commercial and strategic relations between the two countries to a higher level.

The statement also mentioned that a formal bidding process has been initiated for a light and medium-class icebreaker tender opened by some Turkish shipyards in line with the needs of the US Coast Guard (USCG) in collaboration with the US-based Intel Marine company.

Additionally, it was conveyed that the developed tripartite strategic business model aims to combine the advanced technology experience of Finnish engineering firms in ice-class vessels with the speed and efficiency of Turkish shipyards' construction processes, alongside the shipyard infrastructure that will meet the operational requirements of the US.

"We wanted to showcase the capacity of Turkish shipbuilding"

GİSBİR Secretary General Mehtap Özdemir stated in a press release that this was the first time the association participated in the Sea-Air-Space fair.

Recalling that the US has had a protectionist policy in shipbuilding for many years, Özdemir noted that the Trump administration's special interest in shipbuilding has made the sector more open to collaborations.

Özdemir said, "In this sense, we wanted to showcase the capacity of Turkish shipbuilding here."

Highlighting that Turkey has a strong production infrastructure in both commercial and military fields with its 85 active shipyards, Özdemir expressed the desire to develop this knowledge and experience through collaboration with stakeholders in different countries around the world.

GİSBİR's representative in America and founder of Intel Marine, Pierce Vanlı, also stated that they aim to meet the needs of the American ship industry by directing projects in the US to Turkish shipyards.

Vanlı noted that they aim to ensure the involvement of Turkish shipyards in the design and production processes of the light and medium-class icebreaker projects needed by the US Coast Guard.

Source: SeaNews Türkiye