TSAMTO, April 2. Two Saudi companies will start joint production of Turkish attack drones for the benefit of the Saudi Armed Forces.
According to Defense News, the company Intra Defense Technologies and Advanced Electronics Company will produce UAV "Karayel-SU" (Karayel-SU) under the license of the Turkish Vestel Savunma.
Vestel Savunma did not respond to Defense News ' request for comment, but a company official told the publication on condition of anonymity that Advanced Electronics Company will provide components for electronics, and Vestal will supply "basic critical structural components." In addition to the joint production agreement, Saudi Arabia is also negotiating the purchase of a batch of Karael-SU UAVs in finished form.
The publication recalls that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on March 16, 2021, said that " Saudi Arabia has a demand for Turkish combat UAVs," without going into specific details. Then many experts considered that the Bayraktar or Anka UAVs would be purchased.
The Turkish company Vestel Savunma presented a shock version of the UAV "Karael-SU" at the Dubai Airshow 2017 and immediately interested the Saudis. According to Defense News, the joint production program includes the production of a batch of 40 devices in the period from 2021 to 2025. The Turkish drone will be renamed "Haboob" (Haboob) in Saudi Arabia.
On the part of the CAMTO, we recall that the General Directorate of the Military Industry of Saudi Arabia (GAMI) on April 27, 2020 announced the purchase of six UAVs from Intra Defense Technologies with delivery in 2021 and another 40 systems within five years. However, at that time, the type of purchased UAV was not known.
The new strike modification of the Karael-SU differs from the basic version of the Karael by an increased wingspan of 13 m (10.5 m for the base), an increased load capacity of 120 kg (50 kg for the base) and the presence of four weapon suspension points. At the Dubai Airshow, the new UAV was presented with mock-ups of the MAM-L and MAM-C intelligent ammunition manufactured by Roketsan. The duration of the flight of the UAV without weapons is up to 20 hours at an altitude of 18,000 feet or 8 hours with a payload of 120 kg. Speed – 60-80 knots at a range of up to 150 km and an altitude of up to 5.5 km.
