Baykar to showcase drones at International Paris Air Show

ISTANBUL

Baykar, a leading Turkish defense firm, will showcase its locally produced unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at the International Paris Air Show, one of the world's largest aviation events.

The event will take place for the 55th time at Paris-Le Bourget Airport from June 16 to 22, bringing together aviation and space leaders and showcasing innovative technologies.

Baykar, one of the world's largest UAV exporters, and Italian defense giant Leonardo SpA's recent joint venture will have their "international launch" at the event.

On June 10, Leonardo CEO Roberto Cingolani and Baykar chairman Selçuk Bayraktar released a YouTube video titled "Let's meet at #ParisAirShow," inviting people to their LBA Systems display — the two companies' joint venture.

“The strong synergy between Leonardo and Baykar is really the asset of the joint venture,” Cingolani said. “We can combine the most advanced payloads, electronics, sensors, cameras, and technologies with the most advanced drones that Baykar is fabricating with different sizes and payloads.”

“LBA Systems brings together two engineering heavyweights with a shared vision: Baykar’s battle-proven UCAV technologies and Leonardo’s European experience and system integration form a perfect alliance — let’s meet, connect and take part in these exciting days together,” Bayraktar said in the video.

Baykar’s locally produced UAVs will be showcased for the first time at the International Paris Air Show, namely the Bayraktar Akıncı unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), the Bayraktar TB3 UAV, and the Kemankes 1 Mini Intelligent Cruise Missile.

Baykar’s Bayraktar Akıncı is a UCAV with a high payload capacity and long-range mission capabilities, and the Bayraktar TB3 is the world’s first UAV that can take off from and land on short-runway ships.

Kemankes 1 is an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered high-precision missile with an operational range of over 200 kilometers (124.27 miles).

Baykar has signed export deals with 35 countries for the Bayraktar TB2 UAV and with 15 countries for the Bayraktar Akinci UCAV so far.