TSAMTO, July 20. Saudi Arabia has announced its intention to support Turkey's struggling economy. One of the areas of further cooperation was the conclusion of a large contract with Baykar for the supply of UAVs.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan went on a tour of the Persian Gulf countries last week amid the ongoing financial crisis in Turkey, when the country's currency is falling in value and inflation is skyrocketing. The Turkish president was the first to visit Saudi Arabia, where, together with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman al-Saud, he took part in the signing of a contract between the Turkish Baykar and the Saudi Ministry of Defense for the purchase of attack UAVs.
Bakyar CEO Haluk Bayraktar announced the signing of a contract with the Ministry of Defense of Saudi Arabia for the supply of Akinci UAVs. The agreement is called the largest defense deal signed by Turkey with Saudi Arabia. Haluk Bayraktar refused to comment on the total cost of the contract and the number of ordered complexes, referring to the customer's requirements. This order makes Saudi Arabia the third confirmed buyer of Baykar UAVs in the Persian Gulf after Qatar and Kuwait. The latter announced last month that it had signed a contract worth $367 million for the supply of Bayraktar TB2.
Saudi Arabia's Defense Minister Khalid bin Mohammed al-Attiyah said on July 18 that Riyadh would acquire unmanned systems "in order to increase the combat readiness of the Kingdom's Armed Forces and strengthen its defensive and production capabilities." It is assumed that part of the Akinci UAV will be produced at facilities in Saudi Arabia.
The deal is seen as a demonstration of a turnaround in relations between the two countries, which have often had disagreements over the past decade, including due to Turkey's support for Qatar during the 2017 diplomatic crisis. R. Erdogan also criticized the Saudi authorities for the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. However, relations have been improving lately. Previously, p .Erdogan visited Saudi Arabia in April 2022, and Prince Mohammed paid a visit to Turkey in June last year.
During the current visit of the Turkish President to Saudi Arabia, the countries signed several agreements in various fields, including the defense industry, energy, communications and investments. The program of the tour R.Erdogan's tour of the Persian Gulf countries also includes visits to Qatar and the UAE.
As reported by TSAMTO, the maximum take–off weight of the Akinci UAV equipped with two turboprop engines ("Akinci") is 5500 kg, wingspan is 20 m, height is 4.1 m, length is 12.3 m. The UAV will be able to carry an internal and external payload weighing up to 450 kg and 900 kg, respectively.
It can perform tasks at altitudes up to 40,000 feet (12,192 m) within 24 hours. The UAV is equipped with an automatic flight control system and autopilot with triple redundancy, six computers with artificial intelligence elements, which allows you to collect information and fly in the absence of a GPS signal. The UAV will receive specially designed equipment, including EO/IR cameras, an active antenna array radar with electronic scanning from Aselsan, an electronic warfare system and satellite communication systems. It will also be able to carry a wide range of weapons on an external suspension, including the MAM-L, MAM-C, Bozok precision-guided munitions developed by Rocketan, CIRIT and L-UMTAS guided missiles, MK-81, MK-82, MK-83 aerial bombs. It is planned to integrate other weapons on board, including the SOM-A cruise missile with a range of 240 km and guided missiles Gokdogan and Bozdogan of the air-to-air class.
