Türkiye's Bayraktar TB3 unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) has completed another significant phase of testing aboard the TCG Anadolu, surpassing 100 successful flights.
Baykar announced on Tuesday that the Bayraktar TB3, the first UCAV in world aviation history capable of fully autonomous takeoff and landing from a ship with a short runway, had been successfully tested aboard the TCG Anadolu.
The fully automatic takeoff and landing capability with image-based artificial intelligence (AI) support was also validated during the latest tests, which took place between May 28 and June 2.
Key capabilities such as visual line tracking, aircraft carrier detection, runway detection and landing angle estimation with ground vision were also successfully tested.
Total flight time over 1,167 hours
With the most recent tests, the Bayraktar TB3 surpassed the 100-flight threshold, completing 101 combat flights. In its ship-based missions, the national UCAV remained airborne for a total of 1,167 hours and 8 minutes.
The total number of sorties conducted as part of the vehicle's general test programme reached 709. The national UCAV, during the long flight test conducted on December 20, 2023, flew continuously for 32 hours, covering a distance of 5,700 kilometres.
On November 19, 2024, the Bayraktar TB3 made its first flight from the TCG Anadolu, marking a watershed moment in the history of global aviation.
Using the UAV-122 supersonic missile manufactured by ROKETSAN, the national UCAV once again showcased its capabilities by precisely striking naval targets between March 25 and 27, 2025.
During the test, the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV effectively executed the laser targeting task while airborne, thereby successfully demonstrating the coordinated laser marking and target engagement capabilities of two distinct UCAVs in the air.
Leader in fighter jet exports
Baykar, the manufacturer of the Bayraktar TB3, became the export leader of the defence and aerospace sector in 2021, 2022 and 2023, according to data from the Secretariat of Defence Industries and the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM).
Since the beginning of the UAV R&D process in 2003, the company has generated 83% of its total revenues from exports.
With exports totalling $1.8 billion in 2023, Baykar ranked among the top 10 companies with the highest exports across all sectors in Türkiye.
A leading company in global drone exports, Baykar continued its success worldwide in 2024, reaching sales of $1.8 billion, with 90 per cent of its revenues generated from exports.
Baykar, which accounted for one-third of the sector's exports alone in 2023, achieved one-fourth of the total exports of the defence and aerospace sector alone in 2024, positioning Türkiye as the leader in the global UCAV export market.
Baykar, the world's largest UAV company, has signed export agreements with 35 countries for the Bayraktar TB2 UCAV and with 15 countries for the Bayraktar AKINCI UCAV.