TAI Develops Supersonic Version of ŞİMŞEK

On TVNET, the Defense Line team examined the ANKA Unmanned Aerial Vehicle at the Gendarmerie UAV Unit Command. Answering the questions of İsmail Umut Arabacı, TUSAŞ Deputy General Manager Ömer Yıldız announced that they are working on the supersonic version of the Şimşek target aircraft. In her speech, Yıldız said, “We increased the speed of Şimşek to 450 knots. We are also preparing a supersonic version of it. With it, we aim to both exceed supersonic speeds and make a high-speed target aircraft that will fly at 0,8-0,9 machs.” said.

Yıldız explained that the developed target aircraft can take on different roles, that is, they can be developed in different configurations. In his speech, Yıldız said, “You can use this class of UAVs for different purposes. One is a target plane and the other is a fake target. Saying a false target presents itself as something other than what it is. If you put another device on Şimşek, Şimşek might look like an F-4, F-16 or maybe an F-35. We call these types of planes fake planes. If he carries explosives on him, he gains the ability to destroy the target by going and hitting it. Of course, we should not expect to hit very big targets, but again, it gains the ability to do critical tasks at critical moments. It is possible to perform all three missions with the same aircraft by simply changing the payload.”

In October 2021, President of the Presidency of Defense Industry İsmail Demir announced that the ŞİMŞEK target aircraft was transformed into a 'missile' that hits long-range targets with GPS-guided autonomous flight. Demir did not provide any information about the range of ŞİMŞEK, which was converted into a kamikaze UAV. İsmail Demir's congratulations to Roketsan as well as TAI in the post indicated that Roketsan was also involved in this study. Roketsan's share is likely to be related to warhead and guidance. Launched with a catapult in tests, the ŞİMŞEK UAV can be integrated into manned and unmanned aerial vehicles.

TUSAŞ General Manager Prof. about the activities of Turkish Aerospace Industries at CNN Türk. Dr. Temel Kotil stated that the ŞİMŞEK target aircraft system was converted into a kamikaze aircraft with a range of 200 km, and that the kamikaze version of ŞİMŞEK carries 5 kg of explosives and can be used by integrating with S/UAV systems. The Şimşek kamikaze aircraft system, which was released from the ANKA S / UAV system in the past, can also be used from the AKSUNGUR S / UAV system.

Source: defenceturk