Page 24 - ADT AUGUST 2021 Online Magazine

up to 27 hours. In spite of positive reviews, the
drone had largely flown under the radar, but its
starring role in Azerbaijan’s military success in
the Karabakh conflict, and successful missions
in Syria and Libya, have raised its profile and
increased its export potential.

International Attention
Impressed by the performance of the TB2 [ UNMANNED SYSTEMS ]
drones that had “proven themselves in war,”
Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak
announced in May this year, that the country
would buy 24 TB2 drones from Turkey, thus
The New Rage drones from Turkey. The drones, equipped with
becoming the first NATO member to acquire
anti-tank missiles, will be delivered in four sets,
with the first to be delivered in 2022. Another
European country that has taken note of the
drone’s impressive performance in war zones is
Albania; the country has set aside about US$10
TURKISH MILITARY DRONES GROW IN DEMAND million to buy multiple drones. Latvia, another
EVEN AS OPERATORS OF CHINESE UAVS NATO member, is also reportedly eyeing the
COMPLAIN ABOUT THEIR QUALITY drone.
British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace is a big
fan of the TB2. “The roots of these drones are
Arun Sivasankaran born out of Turkish innovation,” Wallace said
in a webinar organized by the Royal United
The military unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) market is still dom- Services Institute for Defense and Security
inated by three major players – Israel, the U.S., and China – but Studies (RUSI), a British security think tank, in
Turkey has been making major inroads and looks primed to garner December last year. The drone has the capa-
a larger market share. bility to present real challenges to the enemy,”
he added.
The growing interest in Turkish drones is primarily because of two
factors – its affordability and proven effectiveness. Turkey’s indig- Export Potential
enously made medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) Bayraktar One of the main selling points of the drone is
TB2 drone, manufactured by defense company Baykar and already that it does not cost nearly as much as some of
in use in Turkey, Qatar and Azerbaijan, has lately caught the atten- the military UAVs that militaries are eyeing, such
tion of military officials around the world because of its success in as the MQ-9B, manufactured by US-based
three separate war zones in 2020. The drone costs under US$2 GA-ASI, or the Heron TP UAV, made by Israel
million per unit, which is substantially less than the cost of military Aerospace Industries (IAI). “The TB2 and its
UAVs made by Israel and the U.S. accompanying munitions combine technical
abilities with an affordability that means their
In July this year, Ukraine’s Defence Ministry announced that the commanders can tolerate some attrition while
country’s Navy had taken delivery of its first TB2 unmanned combat presenting real challenges to the enemy,” says
aerial vehicles (UCAVs) system. The Navy is the country’s second Wallace.
service to have the system in its arsenal, after the Army. In 2019,
the country had tested and purchased 12 TB2 UAVs. Ukraine is Another factor that will help Turkey find more
reportedly set to take delivery of five more TB2 drones, as well as takers for its drones is the declining popular-
ammunition for the drones, this year. In a sign of rapidly strength- ity of Chinese military drones, with operators
ening defence ties between the two nations, Turkey and Ukraine such as the Iraqi Air Force and the Jordanian
are also establishing a joint venture in Ukraine to produce 48 addi- air force complaining of poor quality and
tional TB2s in Ukraine. The company is also eyeing the export of rising maintenance costs of the CH-4 drone.
the drone to countries that have not already bought military UAVs According to industry watchers, Turkey, which
from Turkey. makes drones comparable in price to China but
The TB2, which completed 300,000 operational flight hours in of much better quality, stand a good chance
February this year, have been in use in Turkey since 2014. The UAVs, of making a dent in the military drone market,
which can be armed with weapons such as anti-tank missiles, preci- which has of late become more competitive
sion-guided missiles, and laser-guided rockets, are capable of flying with the U.S. willing to sell its products to an
up to 220 kilometers per hour and have a maximum endurance of increasing number of countries.

24 | August 2021 WWW .GBP .COM.SG/ ADT