Bayraktar TB2 armed unmanned aerial vehicle (SİHA), produced by Baykar Technology, made its first flight 12 years ago today, on April 29, 2014. Bayraktar TB2 first entered Turkey’s inventory in 2014. Bayraktar TB2 was developed by Turkish engineers of Baykar Technology in the medium altitude, long endurance class for reconnaissance and intelligence missions. Bayraktar TB2, which has fully autonomous taxi, take-off, landing and normal cruise capabilities with its avionics systems and sensor fusion architecture, has a wingspan of 12 meters, a height of 2 meters 20 centimeters and a length of 6 meters 50 centimeters.
Bayraktar TB2 has a payload capacity of 150 kilograms, a gasoline capacity of 300 liters, a speed of 220 kilometers per hour, a maximum altitude of 27 thousand 30 feet, a maximum take-off weight of 650 kilograms and an air endurance of 27 hours and 3 minutes. Baykar Real-Time Image Transfer System used for Bayraktar TB2 allows high-resolution, lag-free live broadcasts to be watched by many users at the same time, with authorization.
Baykar Mobile Ground Control Station, which has powerful communication antennas, allows controlling Bayraktar TB2 at forward bases far from its main base areas. Bayraktar TB2 has so far been exported to more than 20 countries, especially Azerbaijan, Libya and Ukraine, and export negotiations are still ongoing. Bayraktar TB2s, which are actively used in Turkey’s fight against terrorism, played important roles in operations such as Euphrates Shield, Olive Branch and Spring Shield, especially in Syria.
TB2s used by the Azerbaijani army in Karabakh became the first war won with UCAVs in the world conjuncture. TB2s are used extensively by the Ukrainian army in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. The first UAV export was made to a NATO and EU member country. Türkiye and Poland shook hands to export 24 Bayraktar TB 2 armed unmanned aerial vehicles (SİHA) in 2021. Thus, Türkiye made its first UAV export to NATO and EU member Poland.
Bayraktar TB2, Turkey’s first national and unique UCAV in the skies for more than 400 thousand hours, broke a new record in Turkish aviation history by successfully completing more than 400 thousand flight hours on November 26, 2021. The unmanned aerial vehicle TB2, which was armed in 2015, has currently been in active service within the Turkish Armed Forces, Gendarmerie and Police Department since 2014. Bayraktar TB2s continue to attract the attention of many countries due to their success in conflict zones where they are used.
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