Anka drones are an unmanned aircraft that can perform a range of military activities in real-time such as: intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), communication relay, target acquisition and tracking.
Turkey’s premier arms producer Turkish Aerospace Industry (TAI) and Pakistan’s missile manufacturer and civilian R&D organization National Engineering & Scientific Commission (NESCOM) have signed an agreement to produce parts of the Turkish medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) Anka armed drone.
TAI will share technology and resources with NESCOM as signed in the agreement to expand Turkish drone market.
Temel Kotil, TAI General Manager, was quoted in Turkey’s Anadolu Agency report as saying, “This contract we made with Pakistan within the scope of our Anka UAV systems will provide significant gains to the UAV industry. This acquisition, especially with Pakistan’s National Engineering and Science Commission, will strengthen our UAVs.”
He also said, “This way, our UAVs will be strengthened. It is very important that we continue our historical brotherhood for the gains of both countries. We will implement the human resources cooperation we have made in the past years in this contract as well. In addition, we will develop production and especially technological developments together.”
TAI opened its first office in Pakistan in 2019 at the National Science & Technology Park, Islamabad.
What are Anka Drones?
Here is a brief description of the Anka drone:
- Project Type: Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
- Manufacturer: Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI)
- Operator: Turkish Air Force Command
- First Flight: September 2016
Anka drones are an unmanned aircraft that can perform a range of military activities in real-time such as: intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), communication relay, target acquisition and tracking.
Anka has a capacity to carry 200 kg of payload which can include a camera, an enemy identification system, a guided missile and the missile launcher.
It can maintain a flight at 30,000 feet for more than 24 hours and can be operated in both fully autonomous and remote control modes.
Performance in the battlefield
Anka drones have earned high-profile successes in battlefields in Syria, Libya and Azerbaijan. They have been termed by experts to be a tactical game-changer.
Originally published at Samaa tv