JAKARTA - Turkey will soon witness a test flight of a state-of-the-art multifunctional unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which can be used as a self-defense tool against drones or used in attacks, a senior official at a Turkish manufacturing company said.
The UAV is part of various drone detection and destruction systems developed by Havelsan and Transvaro. The UAV in question is Fedai.
Güray Ali Canlı, a member of the executive board of Transvaro, which manufactures Fedai, said the device has a protection system developed to stop UAV or drone attacks, but the vehicle itself could be used to attack in the future if needed.
He said their main goal is to shoot down armed drones and UAVs, but by changing the warhead, the Fedai could also be used as an anti-tank, anti-personnel, or attack-capable vehicle defense system.
"The structure of the tracking mechanism of Fedai's wings and followers is different from all other products," explains Canlı, adding that when the threat approaches, it explodes on the target with its own optical search system, citing Daily Sabah of Anadolu Agency Oct. 10.
They will demonstrate shooting down a real drone by the end of the month, the Transvaro official said, adding that the UAV was fully developed by Turkish engineers.
He noted, due to the rapid development of such unmanned systems in recent years, it has become difficult to stop autonomous and swarm attack drones.
Meanwhile, Havelsan Command Control's Defense Technology Business Development Manager Nezih işman said they were looking for ways to develop systems that could protect large campuses, critical facilities or infrastructure, organizations with dispersed power, such as the gendarmerie, as well as critical locations such as the capital Ankara which is home to many important institutions.
He added that they took the sprawling STAR Refinery complex in western Aliağa Izmir as a prototype and started integration studies with its stakeholders for several defense plans.
Kamikaze drones use specific targets and identification information. It flies for a while and starts by visually scanning its target. Immediately after capturing its target remotely, it can destroy a single UAV or a swarm of UAVs at its location by detonating the warhead, according to işman.
Havelsan is in charge of the drone's detection radar, its electro-optic circuitry, control console, ability to detect threats, and use related fusion algorithms.
Explaining how the idea of having Fedai for national self-defense came about, Canl said small UAVs could have a big effect today.
"Many methods have been developed to bring them down, but the most effective is shooting them in the air. Many studies have been started all over the world on this subject, from the Far East to the United States and Europe. We are also examining these studies," he said.
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