9. Turkey's TAI Anka
Turkish Aerospace Industries is the manufacturer.
The Turkish Armed Forces are the main users.
Cost of Program: $200+ million*
Cost per unit: $100 million*
Turkish Aerospace Industries' TAI Anka is an unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) that resembles drones manufactured by General Atomics and Lockheed Martin. The Zumrud-u Anka, or Anka kusu in Turkish, is a phoenix from Turkish mythology and the inspiration for the name TAI Anka.
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Facebook.com, Murad Hashan, and Tai Anka (Turkey)
The Turkish Armed Forces use the TAI Anka. Anka-A, the base model, is a Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, or MALE UAV. With its precision weapons systems, synthetic aperture radar, and satellite communication, the Anka has evolved into a modular platform. The A, B, S, -1, and -2 Anka variations are among them.
A variety of payloads are possible with the TAI Anka, such as an ISAR, EO/FLIR/LRF/LDS camera, SAR/GMTI, and EO day TV. Despite numerous issues during testing, the TAI Anka eventually took off, even though there were a few accidents. In 2010, testing commenced, and after fifteen minutes, the UAV crashed. Eventually, things sorted themselves out.
