Turkish drone-maker Baykar signs major export deal with Saudi Arabia

Turkish drone manufacturer Baykar signed the largest defence 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 Akinci.

Akinci 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 Erdogan's visit to Saudi Arabia, the two countries signed a series of deals on Monday encompassing investment, the defence industry, energy and communications.

Since the beginning of the UAV R&D process in 2003, Baykar has earned 75 percent of all its revenues from exports.

According to the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TIM) in 2021, it became the export leader of the defence and aerospace industry.

Baykar, whose export rate was 99.3 percent in the contracts signed in 2022, reported $1.18 billion in revenue.

In December, Albania also purchased three Bayraktar TB2 drones, the model that is becoming increasingly popular after its use by the Ukrainian forces against Russian forces.