The Turkish defense industry has added a new product to the kamikaze unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) developed domestically. The new drone, named Deli, was developed by Titra Teknoloji and was exhibited for the first time at the SAHA Expo defense and aviation fair starting Tuesday in Istanbul.
Titra Teknoloji general manager Davut Yılmaz told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the Deli Project was started about two years ago.
He said they set out to develop a fixed-wing kamikaze UAV that can be launched manually or from a catapult, which is as cost-effective as possible, adding the testing process near end and that they expect the product to reach a level where it can be added to the inventory by the end of this year.
With its autonomous and manual operational capabilities, Deli can be easily transported with its modular structure and is ready for use in less than 15 minutes. Deli, whose safety level has been increased with anti-jamming devices, can reach a cruising speed of 80 kph (50 mph) and a maximum speed of 180 kph.
Deli is preparing to enter the battlefield with a maximum altitude of 3,500 meters (11483 feet) and an operational altitude of 150-500 meters. It has a warhead of around 3.1 kilograms (6.8 pounds).
The warhead to be used on the kamikaze UAV was developed by the Defense Industries Research and Development Institute (SAGE) of the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK).
Yılmaz further noted that their product has three basic advantages compared to similar products on the market.
“First, it is cost-effective. This kind of kamikaze drone is preferred to be cheap because you will not use it twice,” he said.
The second advantage is the drone’s warhead, according to Yılmaz while the third advantage is its autonomy capability.
“Thanks to the algorithms we developed ourselves with its autonomy features, we think Deli will make a big difference,” he said.
