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Turkey is preparing to hand over six “Bayraktar TB2” military drones to Qatar as part of a deal signed by the two sides in 2018.
According to Anadolu Agency, the deal signed between Qatar Armed Forces and the Turkish aircraft manufacturer ‘Baykar Machinery’ on the sidelines of the Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference (Dimdex 2018) included six unmanned aircraft and control stations as well as technical and logistical support for these aircraft.
The six aircraft and control stations have passed the factory quality tests and are ready for handover to the Qatari Armed Forces.
As part of the same deal, a 55-member Qatari team has completed its training courses on the use of the TB2 drones in Turkey by a team of Baykar engineers and experts.
At the end of the four-month course, all members of the Qatari team have graduated, including an unmanned drone commander, maintenance personnel and other functionaries related to the TB2 aircraft.
The graduation ceremony was held at the Baykar training facility in northwestern Turkey’s Edirne Province.
The function was attended by Turkey’s Deputy Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacir, Baykar Machinery Technical Manager Selcuk Bayraktar and a number of Qatari and Turkish officials.
Speaking during the ceremony, Selcuk Bayraktar said that Turkey currently ranks sixth in the world among countries capable of producing unmanned aerial vehicles and their smart weapons, depending on local capacities.
He added that the Turkish drones played an important role during the operations Euphrates Shield and Olive Branch, which were carried out by the Turkish military in northern Syria. Bayraktar stressed that the drones deal would contribute to cementing the Qatari-Turkish relations.
Turkey’s Deputy Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacir said that Turkey’s defense production has increased by 65 percent during the past 15 years.
Under the deal, Baykar Machinery will provide technical and logistical support to the Qatari side for the aircraft operating system for two years.
The deal marks the first sale of the ‘Bayraktar TB2’ aircraft to the Turkish system.
‘Bayraktar TB2’ is a medium-altitude and long-range (MALE) tactical unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system.
The aircraft provides operational information to the operations centres of the Turkish armed forces during its mission in the air, as well as is able to target identified threats with on-board munitions.
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09/02/2019
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