Turkey Ready To Produce Laser Guided Ammunition For Drones: More Effective Warheads, Longer Range

Turkey-made Bozok laser-guided ammunition. (Source: ssb.gov.tr)

JAKARTA - Turkey has started mass-producing the latest mini-munitions developed for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), an official said.

Developed by the TÜBITAK Defense Industries Research and Development Institute (SAGE), the Bozok laser-guided ammunition has undergone several successful fire tests.

Its test firing was carried out by integrating the Bozok into the Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicle (UCAV), developed by Turkish drone magnate Bayraktar.

"The mass production of the Bozok institute's first UAV ammunition has started," said Gürcan Okumuş, manager of TÜBITAK SAGE, adding that they will start deliveries in batches.

Okumus further explained that they developed a more effective warhead for the Bozok and also expanded its range.

"We have developed a penetrating warhead for the Bozok. We will carry out some related firing tests," he said.

The Bozok is smaller and has a lightweight compact structure compared to the MAM-L, which has been actively used by Turkish drones. The MAM-L is part of the domestically developed smart micro-munitions (MAM) family, which also includes the MAM-C and MAM-T.

It is known that the Bozok's range has been extended to 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) from the initial 9 kilometers, but its developers want to increase it even further.

"There was a test fire where we have covered a distance of more than 15 kilometers with the Bozok, we are looking for where we can take this further. We are targeting a longer range," Okumu said.

According to its developers, Bozok provides effective defense without compromising friendly elements in asymmetric warfare, by providing UAV attack capabilities. Its lightweight and compact design allows it to provide an operational fit for drones where weight is critical.

Bozok precision guidance is achieved using a semi-active laser finder. It delivers a large-scale anti-personnel effect relying on proximity sensors and optimized target effectiveness.

Apart from Bozok, Turkey is also known to be nearing the final stages of its Bozdoğan and Gökdoğan self-made air-to-air missiles, which were also developed by TÜBITAK SAGE.

They could be mass-produced soon, as Okumuş said that they were conducting their latest study and analysis. Bozdoğan Gökdoğa is being developed under the Göktüğ project run by TÜBITAK SAGE.

The institute's work on air-to-air missiles began in 2013. It developed the Gökdoğan as a short-range, high-maneuverability, infrared seeker, and the Bozdoğan as an active long-range radar-seeking missile.