Turkiye kizilelma Jets Complete World-First Autonomous Flight

Two prototypes of the Turkish unmanned combat aircraft, Bayraktar kizilelma, have successfully executed the world’s first fully autonomous close-formation flight by jet-powered drones, Turkish defense giant Baykar announced on Sunday. This groundbreaking achievement represents a major milestone in global aviation history, as no other nation has publicly demonstrated autonomous close-formation flying by unmanned fighter-class aircraft.

The test flight was conducted as part of ongoing evaluations of Kızılelma’s smart fleet autonomy capability at the Akıncı Flight Training and Test Center in Çorlu, northwestern Turkiye. This technological breakthrough positions Turkiye at the forefront of unmanned combat aviation development and demonstrates the maturity of indigenous artificial intelligence systems capable of managing complex aerial maneuvers previously restricted to human pilots.

Synchronized Autonomous Flight Operations

During the historic test, the third prototype of Bayraktar Kızılelma, designated PT3, and the fifth prototype, PT5, took off consecutively from the test facility. Once airborne, the two unmanned combat aircraft executed precisely synchronized maneuvers and maintained close formation entirely autonomously, without any human intervention throughout the flight profile. The operation was enabled by sophisticated smart fleet autonomy algorithms developed by Baykar’s engineering team, representing years of research and development investment.

With this achievement, Kızılelma became the first unmanned combat aircraft system globally to demonstrate autonomous close-formation flight, a demanding task traditionally performed exclusively by highly trained manned fighter jet pilots. This capability enables multiple unmanned platforms, operating under the command of a designated leader aircraft, to autonomously adjust their relative positions and carry out coordinated joint missions.

Combat Air Patrol Mission Validation

During the comprehensive flight test, the Combat Air Patrol (CAP) mission, recognized as one of the fundamental elements of modern air combat doctrine, was successfully validated. Kızılelma prototypes conducted patrol flights along a predetermined route while utilizing fleet autonomy software that managed navigation, positioning, and coordination without human input. The test verified the operational feasibility of conducting air defense missions using a national fleet of unmanned combat aircraft, demonstrating that critical defensive tasks can be reliably automated. Patrol and interception missions currently carried out by conventional manned fighter aircraft to protect specific geographic regions or strategic assets may, in the foreseeable future, be performed autonomously by Kızılelma fleets. Throughout the rigorous test process, the autonomous systems of the unmanned combat aircraft and their cooperative operational procedures were closely monitored by engineering teams to ensure safety and performance standards.

Advanced Smart Fleet Autonomy Infrastructure

Developed entirely with Baykar’s proprietary resources and indigenous technology, Kızılelma is expected to continue advancing its capability to conduct coordinated operations across multiple platforms, leveraging its sophisticated smart fleet autonomy infrastructure. This technological framework allows individual aircraft to communicate, coordinate, and adapt to changing tactical situations without constant human oversight. The autonomous formation flight capability represents a critical building block for future concepts such as manned-unmanned teaming, where human-piloted aircraft command formations of autonomous drones to multiply combat effectiveness. Baykar is systematically integrating new capabilities into Kızılelma’s development process, with each test flight validating additional operational functions that bring the platform closer to full-scale deployment.

Previous Historic Achievement

The Kızılelma fighter jet previously made history in world aviation during a test conducted on November 29. In that groundbreaking demonstration, conducted off the coast of Sinop in Turkiye’s northern province, the unmanned aircraft achieved a direct hit with the domestically developed Gökdoğan missile while identifying the target aircraft using the Aselsan-developed Murad AESA radar system. This success represented the world’s first instance of an unmanned combat aircraft destroying a jet-powered aerial target using a beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM). The combination of autonomous formation flight and proven beyond-visual-range engagement capability positions Kızılelma as a comprehensive unmanned combat system capable of performing missions across the full spectrum of air warfare operations.

Also read this: Turkiye Confirms Direct-Hit Test of Hisar-A Missile

Global Leadership in Unmanned Aviation Export Market

Baykar, recognized as the largest company in the global unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) export market, has signed export agreements with 37 countries, including 36 nations for the Bayraktar TB2 and 16 countries for the Bayraktar Akıncı UAVs. This extensive international customer base reflects global confidence in Turkish unmanned aviation technology and operational effectiveness demonstrated in multiple conflicts. In a post on the Turkish social media platform NSosyal regarding the autonomous formation flight test, Baykar Chair and Chief Technology Officer Selçuk Bayraktar proclaimed, “World’s first! Two Unmanned Fighter Aircraft have successfully performed autonomous close-formation flight.”

The firm’s CEO, Haluk Bayraktar, emphasized Turkiye’s innovative approach, stating: “Not copying, but inventing; not imitating, but being followed.” This philosophy underscores Baykar’s commitment to pioneering original technologies rather than replicating existing foreign systems, establishing Turkiye as a technological trendsetter in unmanned combat aviation rather than merely a follower of established defense powers.

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