There was a time when turkey was called the "sick man" of Europe, but today the same country has become the largest military drone exporter in the world. Leaving behind countries like America, china and Israel, turkey has created its own identity in drone technology. This success did not come suddenly but it is the result of Turkey's years of hard work, self-reliance and strategic investments.
Challenges in the early period
In the 90s, when turkey tried to buy Heron UAVs from Israel, a condition was put that only Israeli pilots would fly them. turkey did not like this, and it decided that it would no longer depend on foreign weapons. After this, it had to face sanctions and rejection from its traditional allies many times, which inspired turkey to develop even more self-reliant drone technology.
How Turkey's indigenous drone industry was formed?
In the beginning, Turkish engineers made basic drones for small purposes like surveillance and defense. Gradually they developed such technology that could prove effective in the battlefield as well. Domestic companies such as Baykar, Roketsan and Aselsan played a key role in this change. These companies gave birth to drone technologies that are not only modern but also internationally competitive. The Bayraktar TB2, developed by Baykar in 2014, gave a new twist to this change. This drone has flown more than 7.5 lakh hours so far, which shows its strength and reliability.
Turkey's lead in the world drone market
Today turkey is among the countries that export the most drones. Leaving behind countries like America, china and Israel, turkey has a 65% share in the global drone market, while china has 26% and America has only 8%. The secret of this success is Turkey's self-reliant defense policy and the production of affordable but high-tech drones. This attracts countries that want to avoid American or Chinese options. Turkish drones have proven to be very effective in areas like Ukraine, Libya, syria and Azerbaijan. In the Ukraine-Russia conflict, the TB2 drone has shown its strength by carrying out effective attacks against the Russian army..jpg)
click and follow Indiaherald WhatsApp channel