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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. ‘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 being able to target the identified threats with on-board munitions.
The six aircraft and control stations have passed the factory quality tests and are ready to be handed over to the Qatari Armed Forces, according to gulf-times.com.
The deal signed between Qatar Armed Forces and the Turkish aircraft manufacturer Baykar Machinery in December 2018 included six unmanned aircraft and control stations as well as technical and logistical equipment for these aircraft.
As part of the same deal, a 55-person 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 functions related to the TB2 aircraft.
Turkey currently ranks sixth in the world among countries capable of producing unmanned aerial vehicles and their smart weapons, depending on local capacities, and Turkish drones have played an important role during the operations Euphrates Shield and Olive Branch, which were carried out by the Turkish military in northern Syria.
According to a Turkish government official the drones deal would contribute to cementing the Qatari-Turkish relations.
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 is the first sale of the Bayraktar TB2 aircraft to the Turkish system.
