Türkiye promoted Col. Özlem Karapınar to become the first female general in the Air Force as part of a series of senior appointments approved by the Supreme Military Council.
The decisions were made at the council’s annual meeting on Aug. 4, chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, where promotions, retirements and extensions of service for senior officers were discussed.
Gen. Rafet Dalkıran was appointed as the new commander of the Air Force, replacing Gen. Ziya Cemal Kadıoğlu, whose term had expired. The council also extended Navy Commander Adm. Ercüment Tatlıoğlu’s tenure by one year.
Tatlıoğlu’s term had previously been extended twice at earlier council meetings, while Kadıoğlu’s term had been extended once.
The council promoted 25 generals and admirals to the next rank and elevated 69 colonels to general or admiral ranks. Eighteen Air Force colonels were promoted to brigadier general, including Türkiye’s first astronaut and Air Force pilot Col. Alper Gezeravcı.
Following the decisions, the number of generals and admirals in the Turkish Armed Forces will rise from 328 to 334 as of Aug. 30, 2026. The council also extended the service periods of 24 generals for one year and 530 colonels for two years.
Justice Minister Akın Gürlek, Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi and Land Forces Commander Gen. Metin Tokel attended the council meeting for the first time.
In the previous year’s council meeting, Gen. Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu was appointed as chief of the general staff.
