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| Turkey Believes Kizilelma Will Replace Role of the F-35 Fighter |
Ankara - More than 15 years ago, there was a defense system revolution in Turkey. Engineer and businessman Selcuk Bayraktar shows his small drone to Turkish officials. Bayraktar fully understands the potential of unmanned flying platforms in the future. He wants Turkey to become the world's largest drone operator.
To achieve that goal, Bayraktar asked the Turkish government for help, by comparing his country's combat equipment with Western weapons manufacturers. "Look at Boeing and Lockheed, we will make the same system, Turkey in five years will be at the forefront of the world in terms of drone development. Boeing, Lockheed, these are big companies, right?" he asked Turkish officials during his presentation in 2005.
Looking back years, Turkish drones have been used by Syria, Libya, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Qatar, Morocco, and Pakistan, as well as NATO members Poland, to Ukraine. One of the drones currently under development is the Kizilelma. This drone is predicted to be a jet-powered unmanned fighter aircraft. Single-engine, low-observable, supersonic, and will operate on a carrier that is also being developed by the Bayraktar family.
According to him, the development of this unmanned fighter aircraft will revolutionize warfare. According to defense industry expert Yusuf Akbaba speaking to New Arab, “Kizilelma cannot be compared to other drones, as it is equipped with high artificial intelligence capacity and air-to-air combat features.”
Akbaba added that this drone would be an option for countries with limited funds. "Countries that can't afford a fighter jet, the Kizilelma drone will be an option, given its combat capabilities and low cost, the Kizilelma is worth considering." It's a plus considering that the Kizilelma is still a drone, the military will not hesitate to deploy it into the conflict.
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| Turkey's Unmanned Vehicle Bayraktar TB-2 |
Quoted from New Arab, Turkey is currently ranked third in terms of the drone industry. And by continuing to grow, it will strengthen its position globally. The defense expert also recalled another legendary Turkish drone during the war in Ukraine.
Ukraine is known to operate Bayraktar TB2 drones and has succeeded in repelling Russian troops on several occasions. After considering TB2's achievements so far, the arrival of the Kizilelma drone will change the whole doctrine of war. First it will be felt by Turkey itself, they will reduce dependence on imports of fighter jets. Second, will change the war in the future with unmanned platforms, there will be no more human casualties. In addition, the Kizilelma drone itself will be a pioneer in the concept of an unmanned fighter jet, citing trtworld.
The combat system in this drone is based on the company's experience with its previous drones, namely Bayraktar TB2 and Bayraktar Akinci. The Kizilelma will have aggressive maneuverability, advanced artificial intelligence and the ability to conduct air-to-air combat like a typical fighter jet. Plus, it can take off and land on aircraft carriers with short runways perfect for cross-ocean missions.
Defense Security Asia said the Kizilelma would operate alongside the Turkish Navy's First Amphibious Assault Ship, the TCG Anadolu. Weighing more than 27,000 tons, the TCG Anadolu is the Turkish Navy's largest ship which is expected to be operational later this year.
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| Turkey's Unmanned Fighter Aircraft Bayraktar Kizilelma |
The prototype of the first Bayraktar Kizilelma will use a turbofan to fly at Mach 0.8 near the speed of sound. And in the end, he can shoot at supersonic speeds. The drone is also said to be satellite-controlled, and capable of flying for 5 hours. The success of “stealth” in building drones is a vital phase, and it counts heavily in Kızılelma's design.
Quoted from Naval News, for combat performance this drone will be equipped with domestically built weapons. Planned to carry payloads of up to 1,500 kg, . The Kızılelma drone will be equipped with an AESA radar developed by Turkey's leading defense company, Aselsan. He will have the ability to launch Bozdogan and Gokdogan air-to-air missiles.
In addition, it is also armed with SOM-J cruise missiles with a range of more than 250 km for surface warfare. Coupled with Roketsan-made MAM guided missiles for small-scale attack operations.
Kizilelma is the future fighter platform for Turkey, where they rely heavily on unmanned platforms to carry out air missions. Amazingly, it turns out that Kizilelma will replace the role of the F-35 stealth fighter.
After Turkey failed to get the fighter jet, Kizilelma will fill the void, because the Kizilelma was designed as a fighter jet, but unmanned. He is capable of carrying all kinds of bombs and missiles.