New unmanned land vehicle soon to be deployed in Turkey's Afrin operation


The unmanned land vehicle developed by Katmerciler, which unveiled Remote Controlled Weapon Platform (UKAP) as the first product, will enter the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) inventory. More than 20 unmanned land vehicles will be delivered to the TSK with the first purchase and will be used in the Operation Olive Branch.

The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), which have effectively used the unmanned aerial vehicles in the recent period, will begin to use unmanned land vehicles in operational terms along with the Operation Olive Branch.

The works on the procurement of the unmanned land vehicles which came to forefront following the announcement of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan saying, "We need to be able to produce unmanned tanks and we will do that as well," have come to an end.

After President Erdoğan, Undersecretary for Defense Industries İsmail Demir also announced that a few autonomous unmanned land vehicles will be on the field in the near future. The Undersecretariat later announced that more than 20 unmanned land vehicles will soon be delivered to the TSK and used in the Operation Olive Branch.

According to the information received, in line with these efforts the unmanned land vehicle developed by Katmerciler which introduced Remote Controlled Weapon Platform (UKAP) as the first product will initially enter the TSK inventory. UKAP, which was unveiled for the first time at the 13th International Defense Industry Fair last year, is included in the company's multipurpose unmanned land vehicle family. In the first concept of unmanned land vehicle, ASELSAN's SARP Stabilized Advanced Remote Weapon Platform is used. The platform can be managed in close range with a hand-held remote control. The large bag-type control device allows the vehicle to be sent as a vanguard force to areas far beyond human reach, which in turn keep the troops and the personnel behind it out of the harm's way. The close control is used in situations where it is not possible to have a full command with the remote control and when it is necessary to react in person or instantly. In addition to these, there is a control option via satellite. Satellite control allows multiple vehicles to be used without distance limitations. A wider field of view can also be achieved through UKAP's integration into drones. The platform can be managed within a 3-kilometer range with the remote-control kit. While the operation time is minimum 5 hours with the battery, this time can reach up to 8 hours with the generator. Projects are also in progress in order to increase the speed of the vehicle, which currently has a speed of 25 kilometers per hour. The carrying capacity of the vehicle is up to 3 tons. important force multiplier. It is expected that the "kamikaze drones," which recently entered the inventory, will also create significant activity on the field. In addition to these, the security forces also benefit from unmanned target systems and bomb disposal robots.