Bayraktar Akinci (Raider)

The story of Bayraktar Akinci (the robber)

Over the past decade, Turkey's aerospace industry has made huge strides in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for the military, with several high-profile designs (including their TAI "Anka" series) , locations are detailed elsewhere). The next logical step is to autonomously design, develop and manufacture a combat capability (UCAV) capable of delivering precision munitions at altitude and range.

This role will be fulfilled by the Baykar Makina "Akinci", which was launched at its assembly plant in mid-2018. As things stand, the company hopes to book the maiden flight in 2020 and start deliveries in 2021.

The design uses a twin-turboprop propulsion scheme (each engine drives a five-bladed propeller unit). The engines are located outside the centralized hull structure. As a fuel efficiency measure, the wing main aircraft is cranked at its tip to the engine mounts and sporty winglets. The tail of the aircraft is a vertical tail.

The front part of the fuselage houses optics (Aselsan Cats) and avionics. There are three hardpoints under each wing (six weapons stations in total) for the transport and delivery of Turkish Air Force weapons such as anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) and conventional and Mk 82 precision-guided delivery bombs. Full Satellite Communications (SATCOM) will be included in the design.

External load capacity is said to be up to 900kg, with internal options adding 450kg.

Structurally, the wingspan of the aircraft is 18-20 meters. Performance specs are said to include a service cap of up to 40,000 feet and 24 hours of battery life.

Specification

Basic

Production

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Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes