Turkish drone manufacturer unveils prototype for UAV Stealth Fighter

Europe, Middle East, News June 15, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Turkish drone manufacturer, Bayrak Technologies unveiled its new Kizilelma Stealth Fighter Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)

Turkish Company’s Chief Technology Officer Selcuk Bayraktar posted the photo of Turkey’s first unmanned stealth fighter stating that it was the prototype of the future production model. “First photo of painted Bayraktar Kizilelma. The first photo of its painted coating” said Selcuk Bayraktar’s tweet.

Kizilelma, which translates to ‘Red Apple’, would be a jet-powered, single-engine, low observable stealth unmanned combat aircraft with supersonic flight and carrier capabilities. The aircraft has been designed to be capable of landing and taking off from short runways in order to perform operations from aircraft carrier settings.

The aircraft’s design element has a special emphasis on stealth technology which indicates that it would play an important role in the Turkish Air Force’s future operations in Syria as well as in carrying out military operations against the PKK in Northern Iraq.

Bayraktar Kizilelma would be paired with Turkey’s indigenously produces ammunition systems and missiles. The aircraft would have the capability to carry more than 1500 kilograms of payload while being able to stay in the air for more than 5 hours at a maximum loading capacity.

The aircraft could be controlled within a radius of 500 nautical miles. It would also feature an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar system in order to enhance its situational awareness capabilities.

Turkish media outlets have reported that the new unmanned aerial vehicles are based on the Bayrak technology’s expertise in developing the Akinci Bayraktar drone, which is a high-altitude long-endurance Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle used by Turkish Air Forces since August 2021.

The Turkish drone manufacturer Baykar Technologies has recently achieved a milestone with its Bayraktar TB2 drones. The drone has proven to be quite effective against Russian forces in the Russia-Ukraine war. It has become quite popular among Ukrainians and other eastern European countries. The drone has also proven its worthiness during the conflicts in Syria and Libya. Apart from Bayraktar TB2, Baykar Technologies is also producing a heavier variant called the Akinci Bayraktar drone which has also gathered positive reviews from all over the world for its effectiveness and capabilities.

^{Turkey’s Bayraktar Akıncı is a high-altitude long-endurance unmanned combat aerial vehicle. (Image Credit: Baykar Makina)}

Several of Kızılelma’s design elements are inspired by the Akinci as both aircraft are being planned to be used in high-altitude targeting missions. Akinci, however, is a double rotor UAV powered by a Ukrainian-made turboprop Ivchenko-Progress engine, whereas Kizilelma’s would be a single-engine jet-powered aircraft.

Bayraktar Kizilelma would join to serve Turkish Air Force in near future, as it is expected to complete its trials and make its first flight in 2023.