The Bayraktar TB3, Turkey’s latest armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UCAV), successfully took off and landed from the TCG Anadolu, Turkey’s flagship amphibious assault vessel.
During the test, the Bayraktar TB3 PT2 launched from the deck of the TCG Anadolu, which is equipped with a 232-meter (761-foot) runway that includes a ski-jump ramp angled at 12 degrees.
The UAV completed a 46-minute flight over the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas, landing safely without the need for specialized landing or recovery systems. According to its manufacturer, this makes the TB3 the first fixed-wing UAV to operate from a short-runway ship.
TCG Anadolu, Turkish Navy’s ‘drone carrier’
The Bayraktar TB3 is a carrier-capable armed unmanned aerial vehicle system and, as such, was designed with foldable wings.
Slightly larger than its land-based predecessor, the Bayraktar TB2, the TB3 will also offer an increased payload capacity of up to 280 kilograms (617 pounds). The expected maximum range is 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles), with an endurance of up to 24 hours, though it recently completed a long endurance test mission of over 32 hours.
The unmanned aircraft was first announced in October 2020 and took off for the first time in October 2023. The TB3 is expected to fly alongside the Bayraktar Kizilelma, a carrier-capable “unmanned fighter jet” currently under development.
The TCG Anadolu was initially expected to carry US-made F-35B fighters, but Turkey was excluded from the Joint Strike Fighter program due to its acquisition of Russian S-400 missile systems. As a result, it was modified and its role adjusted to become a “drone carrier”. The warship can also house up to 30 helicopters, such as the upcoming TAI T929 ATAK 2 heavy attack helicopter.