ARMAMENTS

Turkish unmanned aerial vehicles’ operational capabilities seem to constantly upgrade, while operations both in Idlib, Syria and more recently in the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict in Karabakh manifest the new conditions of the modern battlefield. 

Recently, Turkey has unveiled a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system that could play a critical role in anti-submarine warfare (ASW).

ANKA-AKSUNGUR is a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) class UAV System, capable of performing day and night Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance (ISR), and attack missions with a variety of air-to-ground weapons. 

ANKA-AKSUNGUR is powered by two PD-170 Dual Turbo Diesel engines enabling long-endurance operations up to 40,000ft.

Technical features

• Dimensions: Wing Span 24 m / Length 11.6 m
• Maximum Take-Off Weight: 3300 kg
• Dual configuration: ELINT and SIGINT Intelligence Mission with a 150kg Payload and a 24-hour autonomy at 35 ft / Attack/Maritime Patrol Mission with a 750kg payload and a 12-hour autonomy at 25 ft
• Power Plant: Type PD-170 Dual Turbo Diesel / Power 2×170 HP 
• Weapon Payload: 3 hardpoints on each wing with 500 kg, 300 kg, and 150 kg capacities

The drone will have satellite communications (SATCOM) features, which will make it more resilient in jammed environments as well as advanced sensors such as synthetic aperture radar/ground-moving target indicator (SAR/GMTI), which enables it to strike mobile surface targets – like convoys and road-mobile launchers – in large spaces and under any weather conditions.

Also read: Turkey | Delivery of new Bayraktar Akinci UCAVs

The 750-kilogram combat payload will enable Aksungur to carry a broad array of missiles such as:

• TEBER-82 bombs 
• Roketsan’s UMTAS anti-tank missiles with tandem warhead against reactive explosive armor
• TEBER-81 bombs
• MAM-C, MAM-L and Cirit missiles
• KGK 82 and HGK-3 bombs
• Small Diameter bombs

Nevertheless, the real innovation of Turkey’s new UAV is, in the Aksungur UAV’s 750 kg payload configuration, the sonobuoy pod and the magnetic anomaly detectors (MAD). A sonobuoy is a relatively small buoy – typically with a 13 cm (5 in) diameter and 91 cm (3 ft) long – expendable sonar system with a maximum operational time of 8 hours, that is dropped/ejected from aircraft or ships conducting anti-submarine warfare or underwater acoustic research.

Equipped with these systems, Aksungur would make an important anti-submarine warfare asset. 

Also read: Turkey | Baykar unveils new unmanned fighter jet – Photos

According to TUSAŞ, Aksungur has showcased promising signs in recent tests. In September 2020, the UAV flew continuously for more than a day – for 28 hours to be precise – with a payload of 12 Roketsan-manufactured MAM-L smart munitions. Prior to the armed test-flight, the platform even scored an impressive 49-hour non-stop flying capability.

Also read: IDEF 2021 | New Drone Detection and Neutralization System – VIDEO