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Turkey is steadily and almost surely moving towards military self-sufficiency. In addition to that it is moving towards one of the leading positions of unmanned system producers.
The Bayraktar TB2 UAV is infamous at this point, with its affordable price and easy maneuverability and capability to carry out strikes in various environments.
Now, Turkey’s indigenous manufacturers compete to produce an unmanned ground vehicle (UGV).
Four unmanned ground vehicles are competing to enter service with Turkey’s military under the force’s medium-class UGV project.
Turkey’s largest defense company, Aselsan, is participating in the competition with its Aslan UGV, while Havelsan is pitching its Barkan; Best Group is offering its Fedai; and Elektroland Defence is proposing its Hancer.
All four feature Aselsan’s SARP remote-controlled weapon system.
According to a statement released by Turkey’s top defense procurement official, Ismail Demir, the indigenously produced UGVs have reached the final phase of the competition.
The four finalist UGVs carried out tests with their 7.62mm guns and the contest is expected to conclude with a final winner system in August 2021.
Demir described five categories on which the UGVs will be evaluated: general inspection, mobility, autonomy, firing and performance. Due to confidentiality no other specifications or information were provided.
There are, however, expectations that if more than one system is sufficiently good, there could be more than one winner, up to four, as there are that many finalists.
Havelsan first unveiled the Barkan in February to further the company’s “digital troop” concept, which aims for quicker, more effective battlefield technology. The UGV is equipped with a remote-controlled weapon system, electro-optical sensors and data link systems.
It can communicate with low-flying UAVs to carry out joint strikes.
Best Group’s Fedai weighs 400 kg, and can carry up to 400 kg of payload. It can reach a maximum speed of 10 kph. It also has an operational range of 1,000 meters within the line of sight of its operator and can operate up to 300 meters beyond the line of sight. It has a two-axis gyro-aided stabilized gun system that can carry a 7.62mm gun.
Hancer has a payload capacity of 500 kilograms and can operate for 6 hours after 3 hours of charging. The UGV can be controlled within 1,500 meters of its operator. Hancer’s moving pallet system provides an advantage in rough terrain, and it’s able to handle a vertical grade of 60 percent, a side-slope grade of 30 percent, and ditches that are 60 centimeters across. It can be equipped either with a 7.62mm remote weapon system or 40mm grenade launchers.
Finally, Aselsan is keeping its unit secret, but its specifications are likely somewhat similar to the other three contestants. Aselsan has also developed the Kaplan family of UGVs, which the Turkish military uses to neutralize explosive threats, and the company used the technology as a basis for the Aslan system. Aslan can be controlled and transmit data via satellite. For its part, the Kaplan can be fitted with a 7.62mm remote weapon system.
If reports and claims of Turkish UAV, UGV and even maritime drones all come into fruition, it could be that Israel may have some significant competition in the coming months and years.
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The Barkan UAV in the pic looks to be a proposal rendering. It also looks a bit crap, the Aslean weapons system sits very high and wide over the tracked hull. Meaning the the vehicle’s centre of gravity looks questionable. The Aslean system also put all its eggs in one basket – all the main systems, sensors, sights and gun – are slung off a single armature mounted to hull deck via a single rotational point – if that point takes a hit all main systems are comprised.
These will be the TB2 of ground warfare. Lunatics like you said the same thing about Turkish drones —– until they started blowing up pantsirs. Now you call these amateurish. Wait until they start to blow up your Russian made tanks in the streets of Libya and Syria, then you’ll know just what a challenge they pose for the Russian bullies. For your information, there are far more secret weapons programs in Turkey than you can ever find out. You’ll know about those in the battlefield just like the Bayraktars took Pantsirs by surprise. For example, Turkey has a more advanced missile program than Iran. Turkey achieved a 1500 km missile before Iran did, and that was since 2015. Erdogan as prime minister gave the order for a 2500 km missile since 2012. Turkey is currently working on ICBM technology as part of its space ambitions. Everything will be ready to carry a Turkish nuke. Erdogan didn’t hide his intention towards nukes. He says the status quo is unacceptable. Soon, very soon.
Lol, Pantsirs shot down scores of shitty TB-2 drones in Libya. Drones like that unremarkable, just small unmanned prop aircraft. They pose no significant threat to any capable and we’ll equipped military.
If Pantsirs were shooting down TB2 drones, we would have their pictures flooding SF. To date, less than five downed TB2 images have appeared on SF. On the contrary, there are video proofs of TB2 drones blowing up at least 10 pantsirs, S300 from Libya to Syria and N-K. Just search YouTube. Russia currently does not have an effective anti-drone system. I hear they are working on something, but it’s not ready yet, neither is it guaranteed to work against sophisticated drones.
TB2 drones proved a cheap solution to Russia’s over-priced anti-aircraft systems. You know what, I think small drones will soon make long range air defenses like the S400 obsolete. Elon Musk who designs America’s autonomous cars says the era of manned fighterjets are over. The U.S airforce plans to replace its fleet of F16 fighters with fighter drones. If these predictions of drones replacing fighter jets become reality, both the West and Russia will lose the bigger portion of their military advantage over third-world countries. Just imagine that Saddam Hussein had TB2 drones and precision missiles in his armory. US deaths would have reached hundreds of thousands withing days. The changed situation today makes it impossible for American to fight even 1000 km away for its enemy. Russia is in an even worse situation. It lacks the power to wage war thousands of kilometers from the Russian border. For all the Russian hyperbole, it has never fought an inte-state war (in modern history) 500 km away from its borders. All it did is bully Ukraine and Georgia both of which share borders with Russia. Yet Russia tries to compare itself to America which has a global footprint that Russia cannot cover even a fourth militarily.
The SAA’s retreat from Idlib in March 2020 was because they were surprised at the effectiveness of the drones. Nothing they did could stop the drone onslaught and they had to retreat under heavy casualties. But drones are just a small part of Turkey’s weapons programs. The missiles are the most important and secretive of all the programs. For example, Turkey produces air to air missiles while Iran still does not have this technology. Of all missiles, Surface-to-Surface are the easiest.
Just search utoob? Do you even know who owns utoob, imbecile?
Their frustration with Turkey is that Erdogan severely disrupted Russia and Iranian designs for Syria. Turkey is also frustrating Russia’s plans for Libya while threatening a Russian client (Sisi) simultaneously. It pleases me that Erdogan will get to rule until at least July 2023. That means he’ll be the one to deal with the Libyan issue. He has said that Turkey will remain in Libya and Syria as long as the security challenges persist. The December elections in Libya may not hold due to Haftar’s uncooperative behavior. A resumption of the war is all but certain. I hope it drags Sisi into the chaos. This would trigger a massive rebellion among both Egyptian civilian and military. Sisi is already having enough trouble fighting the insurgence in the Sinai peninsula. A second front in Libya will almost certainly collapse his regime. Egyptians are just waiting for the right opportunity to launch a revolution worse than that of 2011. Sisi going into Libya will give them that excuse. The Egyptian Officers Front is a faction of the Egyptian military sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood. Their leader was arrested then released by Sisi. they promised to protect civilians in the street should any other protest occur.
A good toy for Kornet target practice.
Turdttila, you are on the wrong side of history, yet again. Your beloved hts turkrats will be exterminated.