Combat drone Bayraktar TB3: Baykar reports successful tests and ramp take-off

The combat drone Bayraktar TB3 from the Turkish company Baykar Technology recently completed a system identification and performance test. During the test, the new variant of the armed unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) Bayraktar TB2, powered by a domestic TEI PD-170 engine, climbed to an altitude of more than 11,000 metres.

Combat drone ahead of aircraft carrier deployment

The Bayraktar TB3 completed its first tests in Çorlu and was recently moved to the Baykar Flight Training and Test Center in Keşan. There, the TB3 faced a ski-jump test for the first time. One of the runways at the Keşan facility has a 12-degree ramp corresponding to the main deck of the Turkish aircraft carrier “TCG Anadolu” – the ship on which the UCAV is to be based. The Bayraktar TB3 also passed these tests, bringing it closer to carrier deployment. According to a company statement, trials on board are to begin this year.

The aircraft had already demonstrated its capabilities in an endurance test in December of the previous year: the Turkish drone stayed airborne for 32 hours without interruption, covering 5,700 kilometres. Not only the propulsion but also the Aselflir-500 electro-optical reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting system fitted to the TB3 comes from Turkish production.