TSAMTO, September 22. As reported, starting from September 20, Moroccan news sites, the Moroccan Armed Forces received the first batch of Bayraktar TB2 UAVs from the Turkish company Baykar Makina.
According to media reports, which, first of all, refer to the specialized online forum of military news Far-Maroc, deliveries began on September 17. The remaining UAVs will be transferred to the customer in stages.
As reported by TSAMTO, in April 2021, it became known that the Moroccan Armed Forces signed a contract with the Turkish company Baykar Makina with a total value of about 626 million dirhams ($70 million) for the purchase of 13 Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles. In addition to UAVs, the Moroccan Armed Forces should receive four ground control stations, a reconfigurable simulator for modeling UAV control and a digital information storage system. The UAV control center will be created at an air base in Morocco. The agreement also includes the training of military personnel of the Moroccan Armed Forces and the provision of logistical support.
The deal was concluded against the background of growing tensions in relations between Morocco and Algeria over the problem of Western Sahara. Rabbat considers the former Spanish colony an integral part of its territory, and Algeria supports the national liberation movement Polisario Front. The rivalry took a new turn last year, when former US President Donald Trump signed a declaration recognizing Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara in exchange for normalizing the country's relations with Israel.
According to media reports, in July of this year, a group of specialists of the Moroccan Air Force was trained in the use of UAVs in Turkey.
The Bayraktar TB2 UAV is designed for conducting reconnaissance, as well as hitting ground targets using guided munitions. The wingspan of the single-engine vehicle is 12 m, the length is 6.5 m. The UAV with a maximum take-off weight of 700 kg can carry high-precision ammunition MAM-L weighing 21.5 kg, MAM-C weighing 7 kg on four underwing suspension nodes, allowing it to hit targets at ranges from 2 to 8 km. The duration of the UAV flight is up to 27 hours, the payload weight is up to 150 kg, the range in the line of sight is up to 150 km, the maximum speed is about 220 km/h. The Bayraktar TB2 is equipped with an avionics kit that provides taxiing, take-off, flight and landing in autonomous mode.
Currently, Bayraktar TB2 has been acquired by the armed forces of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Qatar, Morocco, Poland and Ukraine. According to the manufacturer, their total flight time reached 300 thousand hours. It is known that the possibility of purchasing UAVs was also evaluated by the Armed Forces of Latvia and Saudi Arabia.