The unmanned helicopter was first used during Turkish operations in the northern region of Iraq, Titra’s chief executive Abdulkadir Sener told reporters during a homeland security expo taking place in Ankara, Turkey, from May 21 to May 23. He said the Turkish government and other countries have requested the platform for use by naval forces.

The strategic cooperation agreement between the Turkish and French firms calls for collaboration in integrating Airbus’ DeckFinder positioning system with the ALPIN.

“Within the scope of this cooperation, we have taken the first step towards the integration of Airbus Deck Finder and the ALPIN Unmanned Helicopter System. As a result of this cooperation, the fully autonomous landing and take-off capability of all rotary wing aerial vehicles, especially ALPIN developed by TiTRA, to moving naval platforms will be made more precise and safer with Airbus Deck Finder,” Titra announced on its social media accounts.

The ALPIN should be able to land on a moving vessel within the next six months, Sener said. And following this work, there could be opportunities for the two companies to cooperate on other projects, the executive added.

The long-range drone is designed for both military and civilian use, including rescue missions. Its design is based on the crewed Italian-made Helisport CH-7 ultralight helicopter. Development of the ALPIN began in 2019 when Titra signed a deal with UAVOS, a drone specialist with offices in the U.S., Canada and Spain. Under the agreement, Titra and UAVOS planned to convert CH-7s into dual-purpose, rotary-wing unmanned aircraft. The ALPIN made its first flight in 2020.

The ALPIN is 7 meters long, 1.5 meters wide and 2.35 meters high. Its rotor diameter is 6.28 meters.

When empty, its weigh is 340 kilograms. It can carry a maximum payload of 200 kilograms, including fuel.

The unmanned helicopter can carrying multiple payloads and transmit real-time information to operators. It features a wideband satellite communication channel for remote operations, a fully redundant autopilot system, autonomous takeoff-and-landing capabilities, a remote ground control network, and an autorotation landing capability.

Airbus’ DeckFinder is a local positioning system that allows crewed and remotely piloted aerial vehicles to determine their relative position in harsh environmental conditions. It provides a 3D image of the platform’s relative position, aiding in safe landings in environments that lack reference points or visual cues. This technology is crucial for landing on small or moving helicopter decks, where even minor deviations can endanger the mission.

Poland signed a deal in May 2021 for the drones and associated equipment. The contract stipulated the delivery of four systems, each of which include six aircraft and three ground control stations.

Baykar first delivered six TB2s in October 2022 at a ceremony held at Poland’s 12th Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Base.

On May 16, it completed the shipment of a cumulative 24 TB2s during an event held in Poland. Attendees included Poland’s deputy defense minister, the head of Turkey’s Presidency of Defence Industries agency, and the general manager of Baykar.

Haluk Bayraktar, who leads the company, wrote Thursday on the social media site X that the firm “delivered the last system of our Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs to Poland. Thus, for the first time in Turkey’s history, we have successfully completed the export of high-tech UCAVs to [both] a NATO and EU member country.”

Defense News has contacted Poland’s Defence Ministry for comment on how the drones will be used, and whether Ukraine will receive any.

Ukraine is currently fighting off a Russian invasion, which has heavily involved drone warfare. The TB2 made headlines when Ukrainian forces used them against Russia early on in the war.

The medium-altitude, long-endurance drone can help with reconnaissance, target identification for artillery and precision strikes. It features an advanced avionic suite with a system that allows for autonomous taxiing, takeoff, landing and cruising.

The memorandum of understanding, signed during the Taipei Aerospace Defense Technology Exhibition this month, involves the transfer of technology to the Asia-Pacific region and other geographic areas, according to a GEOSAT news release.

“Based on this, we will further develop and produce a new generation product, 160 JACKAL drones,” the company’s statement said. “UK-based Flyby Technology has agreed to provide payload solutions, testing and production planning for the new 160 JACKALs product and other Flyby authorized products.”

Murat Islioglu, general manager of Turkish business Fly BVLOS Technology, told Defense News the Jackal drone was originally made for civilian use.

“Following our agreement with our U.K. partner Flyby Technology, Jackal is equipped with Thales LMM [Lightweight Multirole Missiles] and has performed the first test-firing with great success. This was a clear demonstration of the multipurpose capability of Jackal,” Islioglu said.

Research and development for the Jackal began in early 2022, Islioglu added, and was designed and manufactured by Turkish engineers. In April 2022, the company signed an agreement with Flyby Technologies to export five drones for $1.25 million. The drone carried out tests with the LMM weapon in October 2022.

“Just a few months after the export agreement with the British company, we signed an agreement with Taiwan UAV Technology Center to exchange know-how and open an office in Taiwan. This agreement paved the way for future collaborations,” the manager said.

He added that Flyby Technologies has purchased the intellectual property rights for the Jackal in July 2023. “Flyby Technology has full rights to manufacture Jackal in the U.K. and export it. However, we made some reservations regarding the export of Jackal in the agreement,” he noted, a possible reference to customers the Turkish government may not want to receive the drone. “But we still provide technical assistance for our partner.”

The details of production, assembly location and timeline will be confirmed in a separate agreement, Islioglu said.

The Jackal is a remotely piloted air system able to land and take off vertically. It has a payload of maximum 15 kilograms (33 pounds) and has an operating range of 130 kilometers (81 miles). The drone can reach a cruise speed of about 108 kph (67 mph) and can reach a top speed of 160 kph (99 mph). It can operate as high as 4,000 meters, and the pilot can control it via satellite communications technology.

Power for the two pairs of rotors and electric fans currently comes from batteries, but production versions are to use a turbogenerator. The maximum takeoff weight is 105 kilograms, which is to increase to 155 kilograms or more with the new propulsion system.

The Jackal has the potential to conduct airstrikes, provide air support, attack helicopters in flight, target tanks, perform logistics missions, and deny the use of runways and roads. Because it is a plug-and-play system, users can integrate other equipment and technologies into the drone.

During the field test, the company deployed two Baha sub-cloud — or low-altitude — unmanned aerial vehicles; two Barkan unmanned ground vehicles; and a swarm consisting of five drones.

Mehmet Akif Nacar, who leads Havelsan, said the assets performed their tasks during the scenario. He explained that two Pioneer drones provided aerial surveillance and guided the unmanned ground vehicles to identified targets, while the swarm provided reconnaissance. The entire operation was controlled by the so-called Mixed Swarm Operation Center.

“This stage was one of the most important milestones we wanted to achieve in terms of digital forces and swarm technologies. In the future systems, we will continue to develop this ecosystem by working on different scenarios — scenarios where more unmanned aerial vehicles, unmanned ground vehicles and swarm drones can be used, and where multiple drones can operate simultaneously,” Nacar said.

The company told Defense News that the Digital Troop’s research and development phase began three years ago.

“In 2020, the design and development studies of the unmanned ground vehicle Barkan were conducted, the first power supply was provided and the first run was conducted at the end of the year. In the same year, the first design and development studies of the Baha sub-cloud unmanned aerial vehicle began, and the first test flight of Baha was conducted five months later,” the firm said.

Then in 2021, Havelsan launched field tests of its unmanned ground vehicle and drone swarm technologies, the company noted, while a task group worked on the subcloud drones in 2022.

Havelsan declined to comment on upcoming developments, citing confidentiality.

What is the Digital Troop effort?

The Digital Troop concept aims to develop technologies that enable battlefield activities to take less time and be more effective. The idea consists of three main pillars:

• Training and battle preparation through the use of high-tech simulations developed by the company.
• Wearable technologies that help soldiers more easily carry heavy loads, move faster and use heavier weapons. A mechanical, skeletal structure is to be 10 times the size of an average soldier, who will be able to simultaneously communicate with teammates and unmanned systems, assigning objectives as well as sharing location information and tasks.
• The integrated autonomous robotic system, created when the user integrates autonomous unmanned systems with wearable technologies and a command-and-control center, is the foundation of the concept. The control of multiple unmanned ground and aerial vehicles by an individual could mean less soldiers involved in an operation.

The company also wants to incorporate its Sancar unmanned surface vessel. All assets would be managed as part of a network-centric architecture using the company’s combat management system Advent.

Havelsan exported the Baha drone to an African country during the 2023 IDEF exhibition in Istanbul in late July. The Barkan vehicle has gained initial operating capability and was delivered to the Turkish military last year.

Turkish media first ran drawings of the Anka-3 in December, but the company on March 18 released a photo of the combat UAV. The company also said it ran the first taxi tests of the indigenous fighter jet TF-X as well as the Hurjet trainer and light attack aircraft.

At the Border Security Summit held March 21-22 in Ankara, TAI chief executive Temel Kotil said the Anka-3 has begun ground tests ahead of plans for its maiden flight.

“The new unmanned aerial vehicle (UCAV) will be outfitted with the same aviation infrastructure and ground control station as the ANKA drones,” TAI said in a statement. “The first prototype’s structural assembly was completed in January 2023, and ground tests are currently underway. The ANKA-3′s engine will be powered up in April 2023, and the taxi service will begin. The inaugural flight is scheduled for the same month.”

Kotil also discussed technical specifications of the drone during his presentation at the event. According to the CEO, the Anka-3 will have a maximum takeoff weight of 6,500 kilograms (14,330 pounds) and a payload capacity of 1,200 kilograms (2,646 pounds). Its maximum altitude is 40,000 feet, and can last 10 hours at 30,000 feet, he added, which its cruise speed is 250 knots (288 mph) with a top speed of 425 knots (489 mph).

This means the Anka-3 outperforms the company’s other UAVs — the Aksungur and older Anka variants — in terms of speed and payload capacity.

The Anka-3 photo suggests the combat UAV is equipped with two orange-colored drones, which appear to be Simsek target drones converted to serve as loitering munitions — otherwise known as kamikaze drones. The company did not reveal information about the Anka-3′s weapons portfolio and sensors, but it’s expected to feature internal and external weapons stations.

TAI is developing the aircraft primarily for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions; deep-strike operations; and the destruction or suppression of enemy air defenses.

The company declined to provide the unit cost of the Anka-3.

The work is meant to benefit the gathering, directing, processing and distributing of intelligence for use by NATO and its decision-makers. This modernization effort stands as one of the largest software development projects assigned by the alliance to a Turkish entity.

“We are proud to announce that we have signed the INTEL FS-2 Project with [the NCI Agency]! Intelligence process among all the #NATO Commands around the world will be carried out through this system,” STM tweeted.

The modernization effort is scheduled for completion in three and a half years. The company didn’t share information about the value of the INTEL-FS deals, but according to an announcement by the NCI Agency, their cumulative worth is about €31.5 million (U.S. $34.2 million).

The NCI Agency awarded two deals to STM after evaluating commercial and technical proposals received from several software companies in NATO member states. Neither STM nor the NCI Agency responded to a request for information about other competitors in the bidding process.

Following pre-award discussions, STM and the agency signed two contracts. The agency’s headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands, hosted the kick-off meeting for the INTEL-FS2 Project.

The projects are officially named Intelligence Functional Services-Spiral 2 and Ballistic Missile Defense Functions in INTEL-FS. STM’s coding efforts will aid NATO command posts in guiding the amassing, processing, disseminating and exploitation of intelligence data. The software that STM is to update and expand will be used by all NATO commands and military bases to control the flow of intelligence.

STM General Manager Ozgür Güleryüz said the project represents a significant success for Turkey in the field of software exports, adding that this isn’t the first time the company has completed projects for NATO.

“INTEL-FS2 is one of the largest export projects that [Turkey] has ever received from NATO related to software development,” Güleryüz said. “Building on our capabilities in software development, we will now be ensuring the technological transformation of NATO’s intelligence infrastructure. Through the INTEL-FS2 project, the NATO commands will have access to all kinds of intelligence data with modern user interfaces providing a high user experience. The entire project will be carried out by Turkish engineers. We established our project team of about 100 experts.”

The drone is expected to be the air force backbone of the Turkish Navy’s future flagship, LHD Anadolu.

Selcuk Bayraktar, the technology chief at Baykar, announced the first flight with a video on Twitter. The test took place at Corlu Airport, approximately 80-85 kilometers (50 miles) west of Istanbul. The drone flew for 18 minutes and landed at the same airport.

“Today marks the maiden flight of Bayraktar #KIZILELMA, our unmanned fighter jet,” Bayraktar, the technology executive, said in the presentation video he released. “Our country has stepped into the domain of unmanned fighter aircraft, which is ushering the future of air warfare.”

The first flight was initially planned for 2023.

Baykar unveiled the unmanned fighter jet project (initially called MIUS) in summer 2021, and the Kizilelma was spotted on the assembly line in March 2022.

In September 2022, the company conducted the first engine integration test for the unmanned jet. As part of its ground tests, Kizilelma conducted a “taxi test” at slow speed and a roll test at takeoff.

On Dec. 3, the future unmanned combat aircraft conducted a jump test in which it did not actually fly, but the aircraft’s landing gear lifted off the runway for a few seconds. The jet moved from prototype to maiden flight within ten months.

Kizilelma is a private project Baykar has been working on with its resources for over a decade. According to the company, it will have a maximum takeoff weight of 6 tons, including 1.5 tons of ordnance, and will fly at a height of 35,000-40,000 feet. The initial prototype will fly at speeds ranging from 0.6 to 0.9 mph.

Kizilelma will be able to stay in the air for up to 4 to 5 hours and will be controlled by satellite via the SATCOM antenna, Baykar said. It’s powered by AI-322F turbofan engines from Ukraine’s Ivchenko-Progress company.

The jet will be outfitted with an AESA radar built by Aselsan and will be capable of launching indigenous Bozdogan and Gokdogan air-to-air missiles. For surface warfare, the future unmanned plane will be armed with SOM-J cruise missiles with a range of more than 250 km and Roketsan-made MAM family guided bombs for small attack missions.

According to the company, Kizilelma will be able to take off and land on aircraft carriers with short runways and conduct missions with internally carried munitions.

This is the first time the Khan missile system, an export version of the combat-proven Bora ballistic missile system, will enter the inventory of a force other than the Turkish military.

The deal was announced at the Indo Defence Expo & Forum, which ran Nov. 2-5. Speaking to Turkish media, Roketsan’s deputy general manager, Murat Kurtulus, stressed the importance of the Southeast Asian market to the company.

“We will soon be putting our first products into the service of the Indonesian Ministry of Defense thanks to the contracts we have signed,” Kurtulus said. “These are two different products. The Khan missile system is the first. This is a significant weapon system with a range of 280 kilometers and high precision in the battlefield’s depths. The Indonesian military will be the system’s first foreign user.”

Kurtulus also noted the company will develop a tailor-made air defense system for the Indonesian Army.

“The second contract is about the layered air defense system. The Indonesian Ministry of Defense had different requirements in this regard. We have created a new model in collaboration with our international business partners. A technical and financial model has been developed. We will present our first layered air defense system products as two separate medium- and long-range systems here. In the coming months, we will also discuss close air defense systems,” Kurtulus explained.

Roketsan officials did not reveal additional information about the layered air defense system, and the company declined to answer Defense News’ inquiries about the contracts’ values and delivery timelines.

According to Roketsan brochures, the Khan missile can launch from a multi-barrel rocket launcher on an eight-wheel drive vehicle. In accordance with the customer’s requirements, it can also launch from other tactical wheeled vehicles.

The 280-kilometer-range (174-mile-range) missile weighs about 2,500 kilograms (5,512 pounds) with a 470-kilogram (1,036-pound) high-explosive warhead. Khan missiles are managed via aerodynamic control with an electromechanical actuation system, and supported with GPS and inertial guidance system technology.

It’s rumored the Indonesian Navy is interested in Turkey’s Atmaca anti-ship missile system, though Roketsan has not confirmed this.

However, Kurtulus did not Indonesia’s “very large coastlines” and islands, adding that the country “needs naval systems and surface-to-surface guided missiles. We want and hope that we can further develop the cooperation that we signed for the first time at this exhibition in the near future.”

Speaking at a ceremony to mark the occasion, Ismail Demir, head of the Turkish Defence Agency, said the weapon will be effective against targets on land and at sea, including “radar and communications systems, critical facilities such as command centers, and targets of opportunity.”

The device weighs 45 kilograms (99 pounds) and can be equipped with an 11-kg warhead.

Alpagut is envisioned to be launched from aerial platforms in the first phase of the project, though land-launched and sea-launched variants will be manufactured as well. Turkish-made unmanned aerial vehicles, including the TB-3, will be capable to carry and launch the drone munition.

In an interview with Turkish media, an STM executive said the company plans to complete all flight tests of the drone by the end of the next year and achieve operational readiness.

In the meantime, the Turkish defense firm Titra Technology, which has been developing Turkey’s first unmanned helicopter, the Alpin, presented its loitering munition named “Deli” (which means “mad” in Turkish) during the exhibition.

Deli is a smaller drone that can be launched by hand or catapult. It can be operational in less than 15 minutes. The drone has a maximum takeoff weight of 13 kg and has a warhead of 3.1 kg. It has a range of 85 kilometers (53 miles) and can fly for about 75 minutes at a navigation speed of 80 kilometers.

“[F]or the procurement of three (3) MALE-UAS units, the Government has decided to contract with Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI),” Hishammuddin Hussein said in a statement Sunday.

The purchase will be funded under the country’s five-year spending plan, rather than its defense budget, the minister added.

TAI had pitched its Anka, a medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system. According to a TAI news release from 2019 ahead of the defense and aerospace LIMA expo, the company was set to hold high-level talks on exporting the Anka.

On Aug. 18, 2022, Malaysian King Al-Sultan Abdullah visited TAI’s facilities in Ankara, Turkey. Then on Oct. 7, TAI announced a memorandum of understanding for collaboration with MIMOS, Malaysia’s research and development center.

TAI has not issued a statement on the agreement, and company officials declined to comment for this story.

The Anka family of drones can perform reconnaissance, target acquisition and identification, and intelligence gathering missions. It features electro-optical/infrared and synthetic-aperture radar technologies. The manufacturer says the aircraft have autonomous flight capabilities and can take off and land on their own.

The UAV family has a wingspan of 17.5 meters and a length of 8.6 meters, and has a service ceiling of 30,000 feet. They can remain airborne at the operational altitude of 18,000-23,000 feet for more than 30 hours.

It’s possible Malaysia will choose the Anka-S version, which is in use with the militaries of Turkey and Tunisia. That variant boasts a data link range of 250 kilometers (31 miles) and an endurance of 30 hours. It can be armed with a variety of precision-guided bombs and missiles developed in Turkey, including the MAM series of laser-guided bombs that have seen combat in Libya, Syria, Nagorno-Karabakh and Ukraine.

TAI also manufactures the Aksungur drone, which has a higher payload and endurance, and is in service with the Turkish military.

Malaysia’s armed forces and Coast Guard are focused on piracy along its coasts as well as militancy and terrorism in the Sulu Sea, which lies between eastern Malaysia and the southern Philippines.

Malaysia is made up of two separate landmasses with coastlines along the strategic Strait of Malacca and the South China Sea. It is also one of six claimants of ownership over the disputed Spratly group of islands.