Turkey’s cutting-edge Akıncı drone passes another test

The third prototype of Turkey’s state-of-the-art unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) Akıncı has successfully passed another test, the company’s official said Saturday.

Sharing the visuals of the latest tests on his Twitter account, Baykar Makina’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Selçuk Bayraktar said the prototype passed the Medium Altitude System Identification Test.

“Free and independent in our sky,” Bayraktar wrote.

The CTO in February said the company would soon begin mass production of the domestically made UCAV.

Akıncı is expected to enter the Turkish security forces’ inventory this year.

The drone can fly for 24 hours and has a service ceiling of 40,000 feet (12,192 meters), a 20-meter wingspan and the capacity to carry a load of 1,350 kilograms (2,976 pounds).

The Akıncı will be equipped with the locally-made active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar and air-to-air missiles Gökdoğan and Bozdoğan, and will be able to launch several types of locally made ammo, such as standoff missiles (SOM).

The drone’s second prototype last month successfully completed the Developed System Identification Test.

It had completed its first test flight in August at the Çorlu Airport Base Command, in northwestern Tekirdağ province.

News regarding the UCAV’s entry into the inventory, as well as its mass production, has been closely followed by defense enthusiasts both in Turkey and abroad, thanks to the local drone magnate’s proven success with other locally made drones like the Bayraktar TB2.

This particular drone earned worldwide fame after it was operated in Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan, paving the way for more export deals for Baykar.