TSAMTO, January 18th. National Defense Forces (Armed Forces) Ethiopia has adopted the new Akinci unmanned aerial system (LHC) of the Turkish company Baykar Savunma.
As reported by Janes.com With reference to the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) broadcasting company, during a ceremony held on January 16, attended by Field Marshal Berhanu Jula, Chief of Staff of the Ethiopian National Defense Forces, and Lieutenant General Yilma Merdasa, Commander of the Air Force, the Ethiopian Armed Forces adopted two Su-30s (as reported by TSAMTO the day before), as well as the Akinci UAV.
From the CAMTO side, we recall that the picture of the first Akinci UAV (Ethiopian tail number S40) in the Ethiopian Armed Forces was distributed on social networks by a Turkish resource SavunmaSanayiST.com in November 2023. The parameters of the concluded agreement are unknown. According to available information, an unknown number of devices were purchased by the Naval Aviation Command of the Ethiopian Navy.
Information about the procurement of UAVs by Ethiopia:
As previously reported by CAMTO, information that Ethiopia sent a request to the Turkish authorities for the supply of the first tank, as well as related equipment, spare parts and services, first appeared in the media in October 2021. At the same time, the details of the negotiations were not advertised. Subsequently, it became known that at least one complex consisting of four Bayraktar TB2 UAVs was purchased.
Since the end of 2021, human rights organizations have reported airstrikes against the settlements of Tigray using small-sized Turkish-made ammunition, which led to significant civilian casualties. However, neither Ethiopia nor Turkey have officially confirmed the sale of UAVs.
Judging by the video report that appeared on the Internet in early May 2023, at least four Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles were adopted by the Ethiopian Air Force Command.
On May 2, 2023, the EBC broadcasting company posted a video online where at least four Bayraktar TB2 UAVs were shown in one of the hangars at the main Ethiopian Air Force base Harar Meda south of Addis Ababa. Two more devices of this type were shown at the Bahir Dar airbase (370 km north of the capital).
The demonstrated UAVs were equipped with high-precision laser-guided MAM-L ammunition from Roketsan and were probably equipped with the CATS (Common Aperture Targeting System) electron-optical/infrared targeting system developed by the Turkish company Aselsan.
The report also showed a larger unarmed UAV in flight, which was identified as the Chinese Wing Lung.
Wing Lung and Bayraktar TB2 UAVs were first seen on satellite images of the two air bases in late 2021, when Ethiopia probably acquired them to support operations against insurgents in the Tigray area.
Iranian-made UAVs, which were reportedly also acquired during the two-year armed confrontation in Tigray, were not shown in the report.
The Akinci UAV acquired by the Ethiopian Navy's naval aviation has a maximum take–off weight of 5,500 kg, a wingspan of 20 m, a height of 4.1 m, and a length of 12.3 m. The UAV will be able to carry an internal and external payload weighing up to 450 kg and 900 kg, respectively.
Akinci 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 received 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 can also carry a wide range of externally mounted weapons, 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 the Gokdogan and Bozdogan air-to-air guided missiles.
