Our country, which has made serious investments in the domestic defense industry in recent years, continues to reap the rewards of these investments. Especially the new generation domestic UAVs and SİHAs developed by Baykar Defense make a big impact both in our country and in the world. These unmanned aerial vehicles, which are much more effective than their competitors in the similar class, dominate the skies.
According to the latest information, Bayraktar TB2, Turkey’s first national and original SİHA, successfully completed 400 thousand flight hours, breaking a new record in the history of Turkish aviation. Here are the details…
Özdemir Bayraktar, the founder of Baykar, passed away
Özdemir Bayraktar, the founder and Chairman of the Board of Baykar, whom many of us know with SİHAs and UAVs, passed away.
Bayrakter TB2 broke the record!
The National SİHA (Armed Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) Bayraktar TB2 has left another important milestone behind. The Bayraktar TB2 SİHA System, which broke new ground in the history of Turkish aviation, successfully completed 400 thousand flight hours. Thus, Bayraktar TB2 SİHA became the longest-serving national aircraft in the sky.
Developed by Baykar, the manufacturer of Turkey’s national SİHA systems, the national SİHA Bayraktar TB2, which is the best in the world in its class when its technical features and operations are evaluated, entered the inventory of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) in 2014. The unmanned aerial vehicle, which was armed in 2015, is currently operationally used by the Turkish Armed Forces, Gendarmerie General Command, General Directorate of Security and MIT.
Bayraktar TB2 SİHA has been actively working in the fight against terrorism in Turkey and abroad by the security forces since 2014. Bayraktar TB2s, the first SİHA system exported by Turkey to the world, are followed with interest by the world aviation and defense industry. The number of countries with which export contracts were signed with Bayraktar TB2 SİHAs reached 13.
Currently, a total of 257 Bayraktar TB2 SİHAs continue to serve in the inventory of Turkey, Ukraine, Qatar, Azerbaijan and the countries to which delivery is made. Bayraktar TB2 SİHAs, which broke new ground in the history of Turkish aviation, will also fly over the Polish skies next year. Thus, for the first time, Turkey will have exported a high-tech SİHA (Armed Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) to a NATO and European Union (EU) member country.
360 million dollars of exports in 2020
Last year, most of Baykar’s revenues were obtained from exports to abroad. Realizing its first national UAV export in 2012, Baykar achieved a great success in a strategic field such as the defense industry with its 360 million dollar S/UAV system export in 2020. Baykar also earned more than 80% of its revenues from exports in 2021. Negotiations continue with many countries that are interested in national SİHAs.
Baykar, which has developed the software and hardware systems, which are the greatest added value in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles, nationally and uniquely, with its team of Turkish engineers since the early 2000s, is shown as one of the world’s leading technology companies in its field with its engineering power in 13 different disciplines.
Bayraktar TB2 SİHAs, all critical parts, designs and software of which were developed nationally and uniquely by Baykar, are produced at the Özdemir Bayraktar National UAV R&D and Production Campus in Istanbul with a 93% domestic industry participation, which is a record in the world.
Bayraktar TB2 SİHA broke the record by flying for 27 hours and 3 minutes uninterruptedly in challenging geographical and climatic conditions such as high temperature and sandstorm during its demo flight in Kuwait on 16 July 2019. National SİHAs continue to operate in all adverse weather conditions such as desert heat, freezing cold, snow and storms encountered in Qatar, Syria, Ukraine and Karabakh.
The national SİHA, which broke the Turkish altitude record with 27 hours and 3 minutes in the tactical class in the history of Turkish aviation, with the longest airtime and 27 thousand 30 feet altitude, went down in Turkish aviation history with 400 thousand hours of flight. The National SİHA has also won the title of the aircraft that has served Turkey successfully for the longest time.
So what do you think about this subject? Why do you think the national SİHA Bayraktar TB2 is superior to its competitors in its field? You can share your views with us in the comments section.