A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed today between the National Engineering and Scientific Commission of Pakistan and the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) of Turkey for the joint production of components for the Anka Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, including the requisite technology transfer, as well as the further design, research, and development of the Anka UAV and its variants in joint projects. The contract was signed to increase cooperation in drone technology between Pakistan and Turkey, as mandated by the governments of both countries. TAI’s General Manager said that the contract “will have significant gains for the UAV projects and we (TAI & NESCOM) will especially develop production capabilities together as well as research and technological development of further UAVs.”
This agreement between TAI and NESCOM was a long time in the making. Negotiations have been going on since at least 2018. The Pakistan Air Force’s Project Azm is developing a MALE armed drone, codenamed TD-1 or (unofficially) Karrar, which has similar but slightly better performance and characteristics to the Anka-S. It is possible that this drone was built on a mixture of technologies based on the Anka-S UCAV as well as indigenous Pakistani R&D. Nevertheless, the TD-1 has been developed and built entirely at Pakistan Aeronautical Complex. It had completed its maiden flight last year and is in the last stages of development with production to begin soon.
The TAI Anka is a family of Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) drones used for both day/night attack & strike and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) roles as well as Electronic Warfare (EW), SATCOM & SIGINT. The drone has a service ceiling of 30,000 feet and an endurance of 30 hours with a range of 1500 kilometers (combat range: 200 kilometers) and a cruising speed of 110 knots. The drone can be armed with laser guided missiles and rockets.
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