Türkiye's first flying-wing, deep-strike unmanned aerial vehicle has successfully performed its maiden flight, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced on Thursday, the latest addition to the country's famed homegrown drone fleet.
The debut of the new generation air combat fighter, named Anka-3, marks the latest significant advancement in Türkiye's defense capabilities, showcasing the nation's commitment to indigenous technological development in combat drones.
Anka-3 reached an altitude of 8,000 feet during the flight that lasted an hour and 10 minutes, according to its developer and pioneering defense manufacturer Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI).
It is the third member of TAI's Anka drone family and boasts several advantages such as low radar visibility, high speed thanks to its jet engine and a substantial payload capacity.
Erdoğan expressed optimism about the drone's potential contributions.
"Hopefully, our aircraft will make a strong contribution to our country's defense with its advanced technologies, design, and features,” Erdoğan said on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
The drone will be capable of performing different missions such as reconnaissance, surveillance and intelligence, with air-ground munitions, air-to-air ammunition and radar systems. It will be able to perform many tasks such as operation and communication relay together with other friendly elements.
The Anka-3 achieved a speed of 150 knots and also performed a runway overshoot test during the inaugural flight early on Thursday, TAI said.
It features similar avionic architecture and ground control stations to that of the Anka and Anka-2 unmanned combat aerial vehicles, also developed by TAI.
It has neither horizontal nor vertical tails, a design that officials say will enable it to operate covertly without detection. It will also feature a high-speed transfer capability, allowing quick deployment to remote areas.
The Anka-3 is expected to be capable of flying at a service altitude of up to 40,000 feet and withstand flight for up to 10 hours at 30,000 feet.
It will have a maximum takeoff weight of 6,500 kilograms (14,330.05 pounds) and a practical payload capacity of 1,200 kilograms.
The Turkish Aerospace Industries-developed Hürküş basic training aircraft and Anka UAV accompanied Anka-3 on its flight.
Anka-3's capacity will enable the integration of a wide range of options, from commonly used munitions in current UAVs to larger munitions such as SOM-J, MK-82 and bunker-busting bombs.
"We now have a UAV in the sky that the enemy cannot see but can see the enemy," said Temel Kotil, general manager of TUSAŞ.
