The first flight of the Bayraktar TB3 deck drone will take place in 2022
The Turkish Defense Industry Secretariat plans to launch a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) into the air for the first time in 2022. The Defense Turk publication announced the first flight of the Bayraktar TB3 carrier-based drone.
The drone will receive a Turkish-made PD-170 engine. TB3 will be able to take up to 280 kilograms of payload, and the autonomous flight time will be 50 hours.
The publication suggested that Bayraktar TB3 will be part of the aviation group of the promising universal amphibious assault ship (UDC) Anadolu. Up to 40 drones will be placed on the ship, and the onboard equipment of Anadolu will allow ten drones to be used simultaneously.
In February, sources in the Russian Defense Ministry reported that Russian Su-30SM2 fighters will be able to control guided S-70 Hunter drones.
In December, The Drive edition called the Russian Orion drone a competitor to the Turkish Bayraktar TB2. The publication noted that the Russian development can shoot down other UAVs.
Earlier in the same month, Yuri Muravkin, Deputy chief of the Anti-aircraft missile Forces of the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS RF), also said that Bayraktar TB2 remains an easy target for Russian Pantsir complexes.