[Would you like to see this in-game?]
- Yes
- No
0
voters
Description: On 27 April 2023, at the TEKNOFEST 2023 event in Turkey, the well-known drone company Baykar unveiled for the first time their new medium-sized drone for carrier operations, the TB3. Equipped with a heavy payload, foldable wings, and long endurance, the TB3 was developed to fulfill multiple tasks, such as AEW, AWACS, strike, reconnaissance missions, and others. The vehicle was also presented with a brand-new Turkish engine, the TEI-PD170, which will help reduce the company’s reliance on foreign systems, mainly Ukrainian ones. After various engine and gear tests, on October 20, 2023, the first TB3 prototype conducted its maiden flight. This data was not chosen randomly, as just two days later the 100th anniversary of the Turkish Republic was planned to take place. Nearly one year later, after various tests on a sky jump ramp and various corrections, the drone was finally ready to be subjected to its most important trial so far: taking off and landing on an actual aircraft carrier. And so, on October 19, 2024, the second TB3 prototype successfully took off from the Turkish light carrier TCG Anadolu and landed on it shortly after. It was a record, as the TB3 was the first drone of its class to ever land on an aircraft carrier of such size. As for now, the main customer of the drones seems to be the Turkish navy, which will employ an unknown quantity of them alongside the newly made Kizilelma UCAV on the previously mentioned TCG Anadolu. On March 6, 2025, the Italian defense giant Leonardo signed an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with Baykar aimed at the creation of a new joint venture for the development and production of various classes of drones, from small UAVs to large MALE and adjuncts. The joint venture’s first goal was to produce an Akinci Male drone equipped with Italian sensors and systems from Leonardo. Alongside the Italianized Akinci presented on June 16, 2025, a new version of the TB3 equipped with Italian systems was presented as well. This new variant will feature the same new systems equipped on the Akinci, like the LEOSS-T targeting system, BRITE STORM jammer, Osprey 55/30 or Gabbiano T-80UL radar, Ulisses ASW system, new transponder, radio, and others. During the event, Leonardo unveiled various details about the drone, which is going to be certified in Italy by 2026, with production commencing at Ronchi Dei Legionari, the biggest Italian drone production facility, this year. According to some last-hour reports, the Italian Navy will soon begin a testing campaign of this drone on its carriers, Cavour and Trieste, to eventually adopt it in future.
Specifications
Armaments
Riepilogo
Guided bombs:
6x Tolun
6x MAM-T
Air to ground missiles:
8x MAM-L
8x MAM-C
12x DS-16
12x DS-25
6x Bozok
2x Kemankes
2x IHA-122
Air tor air missiles:
6x Sungur
Sources
Riepilogo
PAS 2025 - LBA Systems, Leonardo and Baykar join forces to expand their footprint on the UAV market - EDR Magazine
TB3 at UMEX: Air-to-Ground and Air-to-Air Defence UCAV | TURDEF
BAYKAR Technology | Bayraktar TB3
Italian Navy Carriers Prepare for Bayraktar TB3 UCAVs | TURDEF
RID - Rivista Italiana Difesa - shownews - Bourget 2025, il salone delle guerre. Molte novità italiane. Droni, droni e ancora droni
LBA Systems: Leonardo e Baykar siglano joint venture per lo sviluppo di tecnologie per sistemi a pilotaggio remoto - Aviation Report
Pictures
