Debut flight of newest drone with Ukrainian engine conducted in Türkiye – photo

The first flight of the newest ANKA-3 drone with a Ukrainian engine took place in Türkiye.

Source: European Pravda, citing Bloomberg.

ANKA-3 was developed by the state-owned company Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and equipped with an engine from the Ukrainian company Ivchenko-Progres.

The maiden flight lasted over an hour, during which the drone reached an altitude of 2.4 kilometres and a speed of 150 knots. 

The development of ANKA-3 was surrounded by secrecy, and TAI first posted its photos in March of this year. 

The drone is designed for reconnaissance, observation, and combat missions. It can fly at an altitude of almost 12 kilometres and stay in the air for up to 10 hours, carrying a payload of up to 1200 kilograms. 

The development of new drones is one of the priorities of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who aims to build up Türkiye's defence industry, particularly by modernising the air force. Bloomberg says that the debut flight of the Turkish-made Kaan fighter jet is scheduled for January.

Background:

• It was previously reported that Türkiye had requested the United States permission to engage in the joint production of engines by GE Aerospace, used in F-16 fighter jets. This request is part of Türkiye's desire to install these engines on its domestically manufactured fighter jets.
• Media reports also indicated that during his visit to Berlin in November, Erdoğan might have requested German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to lift the ban on selling at least 20 Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets.

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