Baykar signs deal with Saudi Arabia to jointly produce drones

Turkish drone manufacturer Baykar signed the largest defense deal in Turkish history with Saudi Arabia.

Haluk Bayraktar, the general manager of the firm, tweeted on Tuesday that Baykar and the Saudi Defense Ministry signed a deal for the firm’s combat drone named Akıncı.

Akıncı can carry various payloads, and it is equipped with dual artificial intelligence avionics.

It is able to conduct operations that are performed with fighter jets, carrying electronic support systems, dual satellite communication systems, air-to-air radar, collision avoidance radar and synthetic aperture radar.

It can be used in air-to-ground and air-to-air attack missions as well.

As part of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Saudi Arabia, the two countries signed a series of deals on Monday encompassing investment, the defense industry, energy and communications.

The deal entails technology transfer, joint production

Baykar said on Tuesday in a statement that the accord that Saudi Arabia signed to buy Turkish drones entails cooperation in technology transfer and joint production.

“With the comprehensive agreement, there will be cooperation on technology transfer and joint production in order to advance the high technology development capability of the two countries,” the statement said.

Baykar’s exports saw $1.18 billion

Baykar said 75% of its revenues had come from exports since it began drone research and development in 2003. Last year, its exports amounted to $1.18 billion, with its turnover amounting to $1.4 billion.

It said it had signed export agreements with 30 countries for its Bayraktar TB2 combat drone and with six countries for the larger Bayraktar Akinci combat drone.